The Drunkest Moment At The Indie Spirit Awards

The booze flowed freely at the annual celebration of independent film, especially for the writer of Safety Not Guaranteed.

The 28th annual Film Independent Spirit Awards unfolded in a brisk two-hour ceremony Saturday afternoon underneath a giant tent on the beach of Santa Monica, Calif., and as per usual, it was an irreverent, freewheeling affair. To wit: Host Andy Samberg opened the show with a gut-busting parody trailer for an oddball indie film called Bottle Cap about a woman named Bottle Cap (Samberg) desperate to run her hands through the wind outside a car window. Marisa Tomei played her mother. J.K. Simmons played her father. Ari Graynor and Chris Messina co-starred because “they’re in fucking everything.” The crowd loved it. (The awards air tonight at 10 p.m. ET/PT on IFC.)

But as great as Sanberg’s opening monologue was — he successfully made an Oscar Pistorius joke (“There’s been a lot of problems with this investigation…I think he’s going to walk”) and made fun of Anne Hathaway’s awards show energy by likening her to IFC’s slogan “Always On, Slightly Off” — the show was quickly stolen by the first winner of the night: Best First Screenplay winner Derek Connolly (Safety Not Guaranteed).

Image by David Mcnew / Reuters

2. Connolly leisurely ambled to the stage after presenter Kerry Washington announced his name.

Image by David Mcnew / Reuters

3. For several minutes, he slowly rambled through his acceptance speech, thanking practically everyone involved with his film.

Every so often, he would pause for several seconds, making it seem like he was done. He was not. He just kept going.

Image by David Mcnew / Reuters

4. With the crowd growing increasingly restless, Bryan Cranston leapt up and poured Connolly a glass of whiskey.

Jameson was a sponsor of the event, and everyone had mini-bottles of it at their plate. Connolly downed the entire drink on the spot. And then he kept talking anyway.

Image by David Mcnew / Reuters

5. Eventually, Kerry Washington just escorted him off.

She totally Olivia Pope’d the situation. It was glorious.

Image by David Mcnew / Reuters

6. Best Supporting Male winner Matthew McConaughey later applauded Connolly’s speech.

“Way. To take. Your time.” Indeed!

Image by The Associated Press / AP

7. Here is the full list of winners for this year’s Indie Spirit Awards:

Best Feature
Silver Linings Playbook

Best Director
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook

Best Male Lead
John Hawkes, The Sessions

Best Female Lead
Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

Best Supporting Male
Matthew McConaughey, Magic Mike

Best Supporting Female
Helen Hunt, The Sessions

Best Screenplay
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook

Best First Feature
The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Best First Screenplay
Derek Connolly, Safety Not Guaranteed

Best Documentary
The Invisible War

Best Cinematography
Ben Richardson, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Best International Film
Amour

John Cassavetes Award (for film that cost under $500,000)
Middle of Nowhere

Robert Altman Award (given to director, casting director, and ensemble)
Starlet

Truer Than Fiction Award
The Waiting Room

Someone to Watch Award
Adam Leon, Gimme the Loot

Producers’ Award
Mynette Louie, Stones in the Sun