In addition to the central theme—the violence of institutions against the people outside the norms—Bolognesi felt the necessity of a parallel, "complementary" discussion. First, he tried to put Neto in a love story, but he could not write something satisfying. Making it a story of love and hate, Bolognesi decided to explore another theme he considered a taboo: the father-son relationship. He based the atmosphere of the relation on Franz Kafka's Letter to His Father. He used words from a letter by Lupicínio Rodrigues to a woman to open the film, as he wanted its feelings to guide the story.