To recreate the same visual style for Quark's scenes in the wormhole as had been seen in the pilot episode Emissary (1993), director Rene Auberjonois and director of photography Jonathan West went back to the original shooting method as developed by "Emissary" director David Carson and then director of photography, Marvin V. Rush. As had Rush in the pilot, West overexposed the images and used diffusion filters to create the dazzling white which seems to 'bleed' onto the actors' faces. However, while the white is the same as in "Emissary", there is a subtle difference to the rest of the wormhole footage. Visual Effects Coordinator David Takemura used two versions of every shot: a slightly out-of-focus version, and a clean version. He layered the clean version on top of the out-of-focus version to create an effect that is not quite out-of-focus, but is not quite focused correctly either.
Aside from hearing Maihar'du crying in this episode, his speaking voice is never heard in any of his appearances. This is because he is only allowed to speak to his master, Zek; he uses frequent gestures when addressing others. However, in this episode Maihar'du's voice is heard speaking, but it is only when he is a representation of a Prophet.
One of the nominees for the Carrington Award is Henri Roget of the Central Hospital of Altair 4. This is a clear wink to the classic Science Fiction Movie Forbidden Planet (1956), one of the influences for the original Star Trek. In Forbidden Planet, Earth Cruiser C-57-D lands on Altair 4.
The origins of the plot line involving Bashir's nomination for the Carrington Award are to be found in real life, with this plot actually being something of an in-joke. During its seventh year, Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) was nominated for Best Dramatic Series at the Emmy Awards. Nobody gave it the slightest chance to win, because generally speaking, science fiction shows didn't win awards like that. Everyone expected NYPD Blue (1993) to win. However, despite the unlikely event of a victory, some members of the TNG team became convinced that they were actually going to win. As it turned out, they didn't, but neither did NYPD Blue. Instead, the award went to the unexpected Picket Fences (1992).