Referring to the picture as Torch Light, the 19 May 1983 HR announced that actress Pamela Sue Martin had co-written the screenplay with Eliza Moorman, and that Martin would play a featured role in the film, which was being financed independently by her husband Manuel Rojas’s newly formed UCO Films. The $5 million picture was set to begin later that month in Mexico City, Mexico, at a studio renovated by Rojas and actor Michael Douglas’s Big Stick Productions, whose step-brother, Joel Douglas, would serve as producer.
       HR noted that Robert Kaylor was hired to direct. However, the 16 Jun 1983 HR announced that after less than two weeks of principal photography, Kaylor was replaced by director Tom Wright, due to “creative differences.” Production reportedly remained on schedule as the transition occurred over a weekend. Filmmakers would be moving that week to Los Angeles, CA, to shoot exterior scenes, and principal photography was expected to be completed at the end of the month.
       According to the 16 Feb 1984 DV, the picture, which had previously been shown at drug rehab groups, would hold its world premiere on 21 Mar 1984 in Atlanta, GA, at the PRIDE (Parents Rehabilitation & International Drug Enforcement) convention. The venue for the event was announced by the 15 Mar 1984 HR to be Atlanta’s Fox Theatre.
       Executive producer Manuel Rojas filed a lawsuit on behalf of Torch Productions, against distributor Edward Montoro and Film Ventures International over a licensing dispute, as announced in a 15 Aug 1984 DV news item. Rojas claimed they had not been paid, per their terms, after Film Ventures procured distribution deals in Norway and Africa. The 17 Aug 1984 DV reported that Torch Productions was denied their request for a restraining order against Film Ventures by a Los Angeles Superior Court judge, and that Film Ventures was continuing with their expected release date of 21 Sep 1984.
       According to the 12 Oct 1984 DV, Torch Productions reached an “amicable,” out-of-court settlement with Film Ventures, in which they bought back domestic rights to the picture for an undisclosed, “substantial,” cash sum. The deal allowed Film Ventures to retain international rights, and Manuel Rojas asserted his pleasure in continuing to partner with Film Ventures. Rojas was finalizing a domestic distribution deal, and anticipated a Jan 1985 release date.
       The 28 Nov 1984 HR announced the picture would have its theatrical premiere in Raleigh, NC, on 17 Jan 1985 to spearhead the state’s anti-drug campaign. However, HR questioned the filmmakers’ intent over the inclusion of ten-pages of detailed instructions on how to freebase cocaine in the Torchlight press kit. In the 7 Dec 1984 HR Manuel Rojas addressed the controversial press kit, stating that it was not the right decision to include those pages on freebasing, and that the press kit had since been “tempered down” to highlight the picture’s love story. Rojas explained he was attempting to develop interest in the film by including the “hard core” drug angle in the promotional material, stating that the original press kit had gone unnoticed at the Cannes Film Festival.
       The 7 Dec 1984 HR reported the film was set to open nationwide in 300 theaters on 1 Feb 1985.
       According to the 1 Feb 1985 LAT, Rojas was utilizing his connections in the oil industry through his company, UCO International, to promote the film by covering around fifty-five oil tankers in Southern California with large advertising placards.
       End credits include the following acknowledgements: “Trans Am courtesy of Salowitz Corp. & Steve England; James Redfeather’s artwork by Ben Wright; Lillian’s artwork by Lynn Larson.”