The first feature-length film to be shot in the "Super-Duper 8" widescreen system. It follows the same principles as the popular Super 16 process, where the film is exposed to the very edge for a wider frame. However, since the expanded film gate only makes the exposed image 13% wider (to approx. 1.50:1 aspect ratio), the shots were re-framed to 1.85:1 during the telecine process.
One of very few films to be shot entirely on super 8 film, next to the films Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore (1996) ,
Ozone: The Attack of the Redneck Mutants (1986) , Year of the Horse (1997) and The Manson Family (1997) . Super 8 film can be a difficult format to wok with as it was originally intended to be just home movie film for amateur filmmakers. A typical cartridge of super 8 film only records for three minutes, so Sleep Always is a technical achievement because of its over-an-hour length. The filmmakers recorded numerous scenes on different cartridges and later spliced them together. Super 8 film is a silent film stock as well, meaning that audio was matched up to the characters' lines and actions after recording.