Arnold Schwarzenegger To Receive Legacy Award From SEEfest

EXCLUSIVE: Actor, clean energy advocate and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger will receive the Legacy Award from the South East European Film Festival in Los Angeles on Wednesday evening, the opening night of the 20^th edition of the festival.

“The Legacy Award is honoring an iconic movie star, who began his trailblazing immigrant journey from an Austrian village nestled 16 miles from the Slovenian border in Styria region, dubbed the ‘Green Heart of Austria,’” SEEfest said in a release. “Known globally for championing clean energy and rallying world’s leaders to this cause through the USC Schwarzenegger Institute, Arnold Schwarzenegger has channeled his star power into a powerful campaign for the cleaner, greener future.”

SEEfest’s board of directors said in a statement, “Mr. Schwarzenegger has approached the challenge of building not just better but also a kinder future with hope for the new generation with his customary determination and relentless optimism.”

Accepting the award on behalf of the governor will be Emmy winner Matt Iseman, host of American Ninja Warrior and the winner of the New Celebrity Apprentice when Schwarzenegger served as the Boss. Iseman has worked closely with Schwarzenegger, hosting his Austrian World Summit on Climate Issues, raising money for After School All Stars, and running strong man competitions around the globe for the Arnold Sports Festivals.

Schwarzenegger has numerous projects in the works, including the action comedy The Man with the Bag, in which he will play Santa Claus opposite another impressively muscled screen star, Reacher’s Alan Ritchson in the role of Vance, a former thief who formerly made Santa’s naughty list. Adam Shankman (Hairspray) is directing.

SEEfest, co-presented by ELMA (foundation for European Languages and Movies in America) runs April 30-May 7. The festival will showcase over 50 movies from the culturally rich area of East and Southeast Europe. Wednesday opening night will be the Los Angeles premiere of Romanian filmmaker Bogdan Mureșanu’s acclaimed historical tragicomedy The New Year That Never Came, winner of the FIPRESCI Award and Best Film in the Orizzonti program at the Venice Film Festival last year. Set in 1989 around the time of the ouster of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, the film begins “with the bang of a firecracker in a highly unlikely pair of hands, effectively kicking off the revolution.”

As we reported earlier this month, SEEfest’s competition lineup includes DJ Ahmet directed by newcomer Georgi M. Unkovski, winner of 2025 Sundance World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Creative Vision and the Audience Award. Unkovski’s film spins the “tale of a young shepherd boy’s love of music and his first experience with love.” SEEfest also will screen the most-awarded Eastern European film of the season, the Oscar-nominated The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent directed by Croatian filmmaker Nebojša Slijepčević. The short film won the Palme d’Or at last year’s Cannes, going on to win Best European Short at the European Film Awards and the César Award in France. The film stars Goran Bogdan (third season of TV’s Fargo) in a chilling true-life story set in 1993 in the middle of the war in the former Yugoslavia.

SEEfest was founded in 2006 by Vera Mijojlić, film critic and cultural entrepreneur. The festival has received grants from the Academy for Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, recognition from the California State Assembly, Los Angeles County and cities of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills. Serving as the SEEfest’s honorary chair is Bulgarian American actress and singer Irina Maleeva, who was discovered at age 15 by director Federico Fellini, appearing in three of his films including Fellini’s Satyricon. Maleeva also played a starring role opposite Orson Welles in The Merchant of Venice, directed by Welles.

SEEfest awards prizes in multiple categories. Serving on the jury for Best Feature Film are Tessa Blake, Robert Bailey, and Marlis Pujol. The Best Documentary Film jury includes Sarah Anthony, Alejandra Espasande Bouza, and Gabriel Hayes. Serving on the Best Short Film jury are Leo Behrens, Michael Cory Davis, and Brenna Malloy.

Jurors Lori Nelson, Todd Thompson, and Jonathan Berman will select the winner of Best Documentary Short Film. Best Short Animation Film includes a jury of Omandi Moore-Washington, Rachel Lewis, and Peter Jayne.

SEEfest will award a prize for Best Cinematography in a Feature Film (jurors: Dennis Flippin, Valentina Caniglia, and Jihane Mrad Balaa), and Best Cinematography in a Documentary Film (jurors: Ivan Cordeiro, Mark Hayes, and Denny Dugally).

Among the venues for the festival are the Writers Guild Theatre (opening night), Laemmle Theatres, UCLA James Bridges Theatre, and the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles. For the festival program, click here.