 All three men had worked together in television; another former TV colleague, Simon Wincer, became involved as executive producer with Michael Edgley and succeeded in raising the budget.The screenplay contains numerous references to Banjo Paterson, aside from using his poem "The Man from Snowy River" as the source material and his inclusion as a character in the film.For example, the numerous references to the late Matilda are likely a reference to the song "Waltzing Matilda", which was written by Paterson.