Giamatti is selected because the film made him a viable movie star rather than a supporting actor.
A second explicit Giamatti choice emphasizes the leading career this film enabled.
A stray M.C. Gainey interjection interrupts the Giamatti discussion; it is not treated as an unambiguous final ballot.
Payne is the competing winner because Sideways made him a must-see director and gave his filmography an enduring commercial success; earlier acclaim did not guarantee that leap.
