the project was in development for approximately three years at paramount pictures, during which time a screen adaptation that differed significantly from the novel was written. summit entertainment acquired the rights to the novel after three years of the project's stagnant development. melissa rosenberg wrote a new adaptation of the novel shortly before the 2007–2008 writers guild of america strike and sought to be faithful to the novel's storyline. principal photography took 44 days and was completed on may 2, 2008; the film was primarily shot in oregon.