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When Mameha declines from attending the Baron's party, Hatsumomo viciously asks "taking care of a little nuisance?". While never fully divulged in the film, the novel goes on to explain that Mameha had gone for an abortion at the Baron's request because he already has children with his wife and doesn't want any more. Mameha actually terminated three pregnancies at the Baron's "request", had she not done it he would have ended their relationship and she would have been on her own. He was on good terms with Mameha so she would never say anything against him.
The elements of nature are a running theme through this film and each of the four main Geisha have an elemental character. Sayuri is water, Mameha is wind, Pumpkin is wood (the equivalent of earth) and Hatsumomo is fire.
John Williams passed on scoring the fourth Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) in favor of scoring this film. His work on this film would earn him an Academy Award nomination.
There was much discussion about the traditional Geisha hairstyles of the time period and the filmmakers decided to give each character a specific hairstyle that was slightly symbolic of her character. Pumpkin's hair was slightly over-exaggerated with many ornaments to indicate her character's desperation to succeed. Hatsumomo's hair when loose was wild, while her up-do was set with sections of hair dangling out to indicate her character's disregard for tradition, and her loose morals. Mameha's hair was side swept with simple buns or generally loose over one shoulder to give her a simple elegant appearance, as Mameha is supposed to be naturally beautiful. Sayuri's hair was always a simple style either in a bun, a braid or a less exaggerated style to indicate her natural beauty and less need of elaborate styles.
According to Colleen Atwood, the costume designer, 250 hand-tailored kimonos were made for the film. She also said that their prints, patterns and colors are bigger and bolder than traditional kimonos.
The filmmakers decided that the Gion district of modern-day Kyoto (the Geisha district where Arthur Golden's novel is set) looked much too modern to evoke the 1920s and 30s. So, a large set of the Gion district was constructed outside of Los Angeles in Thousand Oaks, California. The detailed set had real cobblestone streets, bridges, a river, period buildings and antique props which evoked the period described in the novel.