It was a total coincidence that a black cat was meandering in the courtyard directly before Emily Dinova's character Regan was set to stand in that exact same spot . Director Geroni J. Saint-Hilaire spotted the feline and quickly told the cinematographer to grab the shot. Black cats are, of course, symbols of bad luck, believed to be omens of misfortune and death. Gram, upon seeing Regan, encounters both misfortune and death.
The original cut of the film was 20 minutes. While the production team felt the narrative was strong, the film was not as spooky, creepy, and scary as they had hoped. They re-imagined the film, played with the structure, and cut the entire piece down to 10 minutes. Screenwriter Gregory Cioffi describes the change as, "What was originally meant as a slow burner of a short film, turned into a fast and furious roller coaster that sucks you in and spits you out, leaving you to wonder what kind of hellscape you just escaped from."
This film is based on an unpublished short story entitled "And Paint" by Emily Dinova. There are notable differences between the story and the film. In the story, Gracey, Fredric's wife, plays a much bigger role. Fredric himself, in the story, is youthful and vibrant whereas in the film he is older and ominous. In the story, the line, "And paint" was repeated numerous times; when these lines were omitted in the screenplay, screenwriter Gregory Cioffi decided to change the name of the piece to Wet Paint because of its associations with caution and warnings. Also, since sexuality and seductiveness played a part in both the story and the film, Cioffi liked how the new title had an undertone of those themes.
All the artwork in Gram's apartment after he meets Regan, i.e., all of his "dark art", was borrowed from world renown artist Bruce Waldman, a printmaker, illustrator, and college art instructor who has been an adjunct professor at the School of Visual Arts for more than 30 years. His work is, as of the release of this film, represented by: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Mezzanine Gallery, The Old Printshop in New York City, The Flat Iron Galley in Westchester NY, The Old Print Gallery in Washington DC, The Juxtapose Gallery in New Jersey and The Mehu Gallery in New York City.
Gram's painting of a white rose is a motif throughout the film. It is the piece Regan is looking at when they meet. Gram repeatedly sees blood dripping down the center of the rose, symbolizing the death of his innocence by way of Regan. Whether the blood is a physical phenomenon or completely psychological, and within Gram's mind, is left ambiguous.