Sundance: Jim Rash turns pain into comedy in 'The Way, Way Back'

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"The Way, Way Back" opens with a painful scene. A 14-year-old boy is asked by his mother's boyfriend to rate himself on a scale of 1-10. He says six; his prospective stepfather rates him a three.

And the scene was autobiographical for co-writer/co-director Jim Rash ("Community").

"It happened to me," Rash said. "I was asked by my stepfather at the time. I thought that a hunble answer would be six.

"I was wrong."

Well, he turned it into a movie.

"And I'm proud to say I'm a 4.5," Rash said.

Scott D. Pierce