 Coproduced by the O.R.T.F., the film was upon completion rejected by French national television, then released in the cinema where it was subsequently banned by the French government.The film is an adaptation of "Emile, or On Education", Jean-Jacques Rousseau's treatise on education, and its title is a reference to Nietzsche's "The Gay Science".The film was entered into the 19th Berlin International Film Festival.