The credit for Francois Manceaux's character, "Archaeologist," is misspelled as "Archeologist."
       End credits include “Special Thanks to the residents of the Greek Islands of Santorini, Crete, Delos, and Mykonos.”
       According to a Jul 1982 Esquire magazine article, writer-director Randal Kleiser visited the Aegean Islands in Greece during the summer of 1980, after deciding to set a film there. Upon returning to Los Angeles, CA, Kleiser wrote a screenplay, which he completed in Jan 1981. Although Columbia Pictures paid him $150,000 for the property, the studio later decided the script was “too racy,” and Kleiser took the project to executive producer Joel Dean and producer Mike Moder. Filmways Pictures accepted the script in Apr 1981, without the extensive rewrites required by other studios, and repaid Kleiser’s $150,000 paycheck to Columbia. For an additional $35,475, Filmways sent Kleiser and Moder back to Greece for location scouting in May 1981. Production notes in AMPAS library files indicated that a production office was also set up in Fira, on the island of Santorini.
       Esquire reported that Kleiser and Moder chose to cast relatively unknown actors for the film, and offered the part of “Cathy Featherstone” to Daryl Hannah after seeing her in the Warner Bros. commissary. A 22 Jun 1981 DV brief indicated that Dennis Quaid was originally set to star in the picture, then titled Trio, but the 17 Aug 1981 LAHExam later announced his withdrawal from the project. According to Esquire, Quaid was replaced by Peter Gallagher after Kleiser saw the actor’s performance in The Idolmaker (1980, see entry). While in Europe, filmmakers met with an unnamed Italian actress for the part of “Lina,” but she also withdrew due to the script’s extensive nudity, and Valérie Quennessen was chosen in Jul 1981; she is credited onscreen as "Valerie Quennessen." The three lead actors reportedly received between $75,000-$100,000 each for their work on the picture, while Kleiser was paid nearly $1 million.
       A 10 Jul 1981 DV item reported the film’s new title as Under the Sun. According to Esquire, the production flew to Athens, Greece, in early Aug 1981, with equipment from Los Angeles, NJ, and London, England. The majority of the crew was Greek, required by an arrangement with the Greek government, although production notes indicated that the remaining crewmembers were from the U.S. and England. Once in Greece, equipment was transported using mules.
       4 Sep 1981 DV production charts confirmed that principal photography began 19 Aug 1981 under the new working title, The Greek Project. Production materials stated that most filming took place on the island of Santorini, with additional locations in Delos, Mykonos, and Crete. Production was allowed to shoot among the ruins in Delos, and at the actual Santorini excavation site of Akrotiri, instructed by a real archaeologist. Background actors were paid 1,000 drachmas per day, and actor Hans Van Tongeren was cast after Daryl Hannah recognized him on a Santorini street. Peter Gallagher reportedly performed his own stunts for the film.
       The Esquire article noted that makeup artist Katia Despotidou was responsible for tracking continuity to ensure that the actors’ tans matched the timeline of the script, even though scenes were filmed out of sequence. Since filming took place off-season, use of many beaches was offered to the production free of charge. In addition, a Dec 1982 Box article stated that although grapes were off-season during filming, already-picked grapes were re-glued to their vines. Director of photography Timothy Galfas left production halfway through filming, but his replacement remains undetermined. Due to union rules, Galfas still received his full $85,000 salary.
       According to production notes, the final week of filming took place at Crete’s Matala Bay, where crewmembers built tide pools; Esquire stated that Kleiser also built an artificial rock in order to create a beachside cove. Toward the end of production, the 13 Oct 1981 DV announced that the film’s title had been changed again to Summer Lovers. Although a 14 Oct 1981 HR advertisement announced the prior completion of principal photography, Esquire claimed the final day of production took place 17 Oct 1981, after fifty-one days of filming. Box noted that editor Robert Gordon compiled footage while working in an office in Greece, enabling him to work concurrently with production and eliminate the need for later re-shoots.
       Esquire estimated that each day of production cost approximately $54,000, bringing the total budget to $5.3 million, or $7 million after interest and overhead costs. Three weeks after filming concluded, Filmways paid $30,000 for use of the Pointer Sisters’ song, Slow Hand, and later removed it from the film. However, because the song had already been used in the film’s theatrical trailer, the company was unable to have the fee refunded. Music licensing costs were totaled at approximately $300,000, while editing cost $269,480. Esquire reported that Filmways spent $5,000 for the rights to include the 1941 short film, In the Sweet Pie and Pie, and an additional $5,000 to “matte” the footage onto the onscreen movie projector. The company also spent $5 million to distribute Summer Lovers under their own label, which was renamed Orion Pictures after its acquisition in early 1982.
       As stated in the Box article, a rough cut of the film was completed and screened for a teenage preview audience just four and a half months after filming was completed, in early 1982. The 14 Jul 1982 Var announced that special screenings were planned as part of a radio station promotion preceding the film’s summer 1982 national release.