Originally titled "Historic St. Joes"
The film grew out of producer John Henik wanting a series of mini-web videos for St. Joseph's Parish website.
The aesthetic and themes of directors Terrence Malick, David Fincher, and Brian De Palma was Michael Jolls' inspiration for the style and narrative tone for "Cathedral of the North Shore".
In the opening scene, the bookcase behind Natalia Samoylova is stacked with books from the University Press of Mississippi's Conversations with Filmmakers series - the same series that Michael Jolls edited an edition of.
The mother and baby in the opening is played by Katie Dorn and her actual daughter Sophia Michelle Watson.