Laís Bodanzky read the autobiographical book "Canto dos Malditos" by for the first time in 1996, when she was signed to assist with the direction of a documentary on the subject. She found the book after entering a discussion and research group on mental health in Brazil. Impressed by its narrative, she asked Luiz Bolognesi to adapt it, as she knew he had a similar worldview and would have the respect necessary to work on the subject. Bolognesi was reluctant as he considered it a complicated subject; he was close to giving up until he read and was touched by Paulo Leminski's presentation of the book.