For his second feature film, director Curt Truninger was looking for an off beat script with depth and some edge.

Writer Myra Fried had written a dark romantic comedy about two people who wanted to kill themselves. Truninger and Fried met at a barbecue in Toronto and had instant chemistry. So much so, that producer Margrit Ritzmann got a headache from the constant exited chatter between the two.

Myra Fried had come up with the idea for DEAD BY MONDAY when her first feature film was threatened a week before shooting and she considered suicide. Her boyfriend, a writer, was also miserable at the time and decided to kill himself as well. The two started fighting. Suddenly, Fried announced that their suicide would have to wait - she "just had an idea for a script" - and DEAD BY MONDAY was born. She penned the story about a writer who forms a suicide pact with a young widow. Producer Margrit Ritzmann acquired the screenplay for her Swiss-based production company 'Snow Line Pictures', where she is partnered with director Curt Truninger and investment banker Markus Wintsch. As a former psychoanalyst, Margrit Ritzmann was intrigued by the subject of suicide but also entertained by the intelligently written comedy. She got a lot of interest for the script. Ritzmann recalls: "There was this guy from a big time American distributor who called me after he read it on the flight from L. A. to New York and said he never had laughed so much reading on a plane". But a number of people shied away from the subject matter.

Luckily, Ulrich Felsberg of 'Road Movies' in Berlin saw the potential in the project. Felsberg had just come off a huge success with his partner, German director, Wim Wenders, on "BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB" (Oscar nomination) and was looking for a feature off the beaten track. Ritzmann and Felsberg joined forces and together with Bjorg Veland of 'BV Pictures International' in Norway completed the financing. There were also a number of Swiss investors who not only liked the script but were intrigued by this little Swiss production company producing English-speaking films in North America.

Now Ritzmann and director Curt Truninger had to find the perfect cast.

Truninger was looking for fresh actors who could handle the subject in a believable, yet comedic way. After searching all the way from North America to Australia, and talking to several interesting and famous actors, Truninger found a gem to play "Julie" in the British actress Helen Baxendale.

Curt Truninger was convinced after their first meeting that in Helen he had found an extraordinary talent: "Helen has such a luminous, vulnerable yet intelligent personality that I instantly felt she was perfect for the part. She could play a woman who is naive and fragile, but at the same time has an incredible inner strength. And I also think she is a great beauty in a very interesting way. She just reminded me of the young Ingrid Bergman".

Helen Baxendale, who is a star in Britain for her role in the series "Cold Feet" and who is known for her role as David Schwimmer's girlfriend in "Friends", was attracted to DEAD BY MONDAY "because the script is funny and highly intelligent, a combination you don't get offered too often as a woman!"

Finding an "Alex" was even more challenging.

When producer Margrit Ritzmann had a meeting with a well-known British actor in London's Groucho Club, she saw a guy standing at the bar who reminded her of Hugh Grant.

One hour later she discovered that Tim Dutton not only had the famous British charm, but also an irresistable sense of irony and lot of intelligence. She started to think about how to sell this 'discovery' to Curt: "Curt was impressed by Tim in the British film"Tom and Viv". And when he watched Tim as the lead in the short-lived CBS comedy series "Thanks" Curt knew that he had a great comedic talent".

Tim Dutton was attracted by the well-written script and fascinated by the challenge to play the multi-faceted character of 'Alex'. "I had to strike the right balance between moody cynicism and likeability. Alex is certainly acerbic and cynical. A lot of this is a defense and a protection against the world and his own feelings. Working with Curt on DEAD BY MONDAY was the best time I ever had in my acting career. Curt is crazy, funny and still down to earth. He is so supportive and enthusiastic that I would try out anything for him."

Truninger feels the same: "I was incredibly lucky. After passing on several famous actors who wanted to play the part, I finally found the two perfect leads who just did an amazing job."

The shoot took place in Toronto, which was both a blessing and a curse.

The city had become an absolute favourite with American film and TV productions and it was hard for a lower budget film to compete for one of the city's excellent crews. Ritzmann and Truninger had no choice, however, as Niagara Falls figures heavily in the story and was impossible to move to an easier location... Shooting at the Falls - the final destination of the suicidal pair - was a huge challenge, as nobody is permitted to go even near the legendary rushing river. The production attracted a motivated and good crew who worked ceaselessly and created a film which looks like it was shot in a leisurely, Hollywood-style-two-months as opposed to a grueling-25-days.

Remembers Ritzmann: "Our Director of Photography, Martin Fuhrer, together with the whole crew and our operator Ludwig Bogner, did such a great job, and was just tireless. After an incredibly long day I used to go around the set and put eye drops in the DOP's eyes or anybody's who needed it".

Cinematographer Martin Fuhrer together with Curt and the production designer Ian Brock, created exactly the look the director was looking for. Martin Fuhrer: "We went for really warm and tight colours, with an autumnal basic tone, and cooler when we are in Alex' appartment, as he is lonely and relentless in wanting to kill himself."

The opposing themes of the script - suicide, desperation, growing love and - in all that - realistic comedy, demanded an experienced film composer. After having fallen in love with the beautiful score for Whit Stilman's film "BARCELONA", Truninger tracked down composer Mark Suozzo in New York. Producer Margrit Ritzmann:"We could not really afford Mark, but somehow Curt and he instantly got along well and Mark loved the film and gave us a generous deal. He created a beautiful and surprising score which reflects incredibly well the dark part of the story as well as the romantic and very funny side of it."

The soundtrack of Dead by Monday also includes 3 songs by the English pop group Chumbawamba.