Teen Beach Movie (2013) takes place in two different time periods; the contemporary world and the past, specifically 1962.

The film’s target demographic is teenagers who have spent most of their existence solely within the 2000s. The filmmakers could have ignored a lot of aesthetic concepts definitive of the 1960s and got away with it, but instead made a number of conscious decisions when shooting each period that impacted the visual qualities of the film.

Namely, they capitalized on the cheesiness and low-budget film tactics of the early beach party films that inspired the genre.

In an interview with Post Magazine, director Jeffrey Hornaday elaborates on their approach:

“The contemporary stuff was done more realistically. The colors are more muted and the setting was a true on-location set. Once we went to the 1960s, we really went for a deliberate old-school, Technicolor look. The surf sequences that happen in modern time were done in the water, with GoPros on the boards… whereas for the ‘60s part, we literally did the old rear-projection gag where the ocean was rear-projected and the surfers were standing on surfboards on platforms and their hair is dry. Periodically, we’d throw a little water in front of the lens, so we really made it look as fake as we could.”

Beach party films from the 1960s have a droll and campy air about them that defines the genre. For Hornaday’s modern audience with limited reference points, it’s risky to deliberately capture the “so bad it’s good” aphorism by making things look fake on purpose - but it worked for his purposes.