PROVINCETOWN – Reid Antin of Los Angeles is in Paris now as he takes his short film, “Rated R,” on the film festivals circuit.
But last weekend, he was at the Provincetown Film Festival where his 12-minute picture was shown as one of the Shorts screened at the festival.
“Rated R” was Antin’s thesis project at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, where he earned a masters degree.
This week, Antin is in Paris screening his film at the Champs-Elysees Film Festival. It also screened in New Orleans at the Overlook Festival in early June.
“Rated R” is described as a “dark as midnight comedy” about an 8-year-old boy’s scheme to sneak into his first R-rated movie.
Filmmaker Reid Antin with his mother, Karin, at the Provincetown Film Festival 2022. CAPE COD WAVE PHOTO
In Provincetown, Antin, 28, brought along his mother, Karin Antin who played a key role in the original idea for the film.
“It’s because of her,” he said with a smile, gesturing to his mother. “She’d prevent me from watching R-rated films growing up. At the time, he thought to himself, how bad could an R-rated movie possibly be?”
Antin remembers everything about when he finally got to see his first R-rated movie.
He was 9 years old in 2003 when he saw “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” at Wellfleet Cinemas on Cape Cod.
How did a 9-year-old get into an R rated film? He had his own scheme.
He had picked up a flyer from the theater that mistakenly listed the film as PG-13. “I showed it to mom and that’s how I got to see my first R rated movie,” he said.
On the fact that a childhood incident inspired the movie, Karin Antin said, “I thought it was interesting that was in his head.” Watching the film, she said, she was laughing to herself on how she and her son differ. “As a lawyer, I am methodical and follow the rules and I have a son who follows no rules,” she said.
Filmmaker Reid Antin’s T-shirt is inspired by his short film “R Rated,” which takes place at the fictional Merry Time Multiplex Movie Theater. CAPE COD WAVE PHOTO
His film, “Rated R,” stars an 8-year-old child actor, Kue Lawrence, who Antin discovered through auditions in Los Angeles, after auditioning 100 kids.
“He was far and away the best,” Antin said. Finding the right kid for the part was essential.
“He was brilliant. If I picked the wrong kid, the movie would be a disaster. I picked the right kid,” he said.
Besides the young boy in the movie, the mother also has a significant role. “It’s every mother’s nightmare,” Antin said.
Reid Antin grew up in Chappaqua, New York, but his family has long spent summers at their house in Eastham on Cape Cod. He said, he has been going to the Provincetown Film Festival annually for years.
In fact, bringing his film to the Provincetown Film Festival feels like kismet to Antin. “I met my hero Quentin Tarantino here.”
That happened 14 years ago at the festival during a screening of “Pulp Fiction” at the Art House 2 theater. Tarantino was awarded the festival’s Filmmaker on the Edge award that year, 2008.
As to what is next, Antin said he screened the film at CAA (Creative Arts Agency), one of the top Hollywood talent agencies and he said, “I’m working on a couple of projects.”
“Rated R” can be screened through the Provincetown Film Festival web site through June 26.
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