First level international stars were also hired to stage along Montiel, Italian actor Raf Vallone and French actor Frank Villard. Principal photography began in November 1957 under the direction of Luis César Amadori, and took place at CEA Studios in Madrid where the full-scale period sets were constructed under the art direction of Enrique Alarcón. It was mainly filmed on studio by cinematographer Antonio L. Ballesteros in colorful Eastmancolor, and only a few scenes were filmed on location in Madrid. As the film was a co-production with Italy, in mid-January 1958, some footage was filmed in Turin and in Milan to comply with the requisites in place to be a co-production. In late January 1958, some exterior scenes were filmed on location in Paris. The songs were recorded by Hispavox and, as usually those days, the dialogues were added during post-production. For the Spanish original version, Spanish actors were dubbed by themselves and foreigners were dubbed by Spanish voice actors. The score was composed and conducted by Juan Quintero. Costumes were designed by Joaquín Esparza. Montiel was dressed by Cornejo and by Spanish haute couture firms Vargas Ochagavía and Marbel, Mariscal was dressed by Vargas Ochagavía and the general wardrobe was provided by Humberto Cornejo. The film had to deal during production with Francoist film censors that condemned what, according to them, was an immorality in some plot lines and an excessive sensuality of Montiel on-screen. They even cut a scene off that was showing Montiel neckline too close and another that was showing excessive love effusiveness between the main characters. It premiered in Spain only authorized for audiences over 16 years old. This rating was reviewed years later, when censorship was banned, and since then it is rated suitable for all ages. "The Violet Seller" opened on April 6, 1958 in Spain. That same evening, the formal premiere was held in a grand gala at the 1,400-seat Rialto theatre in Madrid, with a big crowd blocking the Gran Vía. The demand for tickets was so high at the Rialto that they had to start selling them up to five days in advance to avoid crowds at the ticket window. The film was running there for 31 weeks, making it the second highest grossing film in Madrid in the 1950s, only surpassed by "The Last Torch Song".