 Dalessandro did several adaptations of the book outline into a film outline and wrote three drafts of the screenplay.After Levinson left the projects, the screenplay went through numerous drafts through with several other screenwriters.In 2007, the project was handed to Pixar and writer/director Brad Bird, where it continued to flounder as it drifted far from Dalessandro's original story, which despite being a work of fiction was widely recognized as being very close to what happened during the earthquake and aftermath.