The turning-point scene, when Arthur decides he shall fulfill his duty, was filmed by candle-light. More than a thousand candles set around the bed were necessary to ensure the dream-like lighting, and, so Thomas Lajudie might seem as truly hypnotized as his character should be, The Velvet Underground's 'Venus in Furs' would play continuously during the five-hour long recording of the scene.
The gondola scene was the first to be shot in the production, and while transporting (purposely similar to those used in early cinema) the gondola in itself to the set, it collapsed, thus forcing the whole crew to hurry fixing it with bits of tape and strings so it still could be used and not put the shooting behind schedule. The actor playing the gondolier had to hold the structure while the scene was being shot, which is why he was edited out.