Arnold Schwarzenegger To Obtain Legacy Award From SEEfest

Actor, clear vitality advocate and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger will obtain the Legacy Award from the South East European Movie Pageant in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, the opening evening of the 20^th version of the pageant.

“The Legacy Award is honoring an iconic film star, who started his trailblazing immigrant journey from an Austrian village nestled 16 miles from the Slovenian border in Styria area, dubbed the ‘Inexperienced Coronary heart of Austria,’” SEEfest stated in a launch. “Recognized globally for championing clear vitality and rallying world’s leaders to this trigger by way of the USC Schwarzenegger Institute, Arnold Schwarzenegger has channeled his star energy into a strong marketing campaign for the cleaner, greener future.”

SEEfest’s board of administrators stated in an announcement, “Mr. Schwarzenegger has approached the problem of constructing not simply higher but in addition a kinder future with hope for the brand new era along with his customary willpower and relentless optimism.”

Accepting the award on behalf of the governor will likely be Emmy winner Matt Iseman, host of American Ninja Warrior and the winner of the New Superstar Apprentice when Schwarzenegger served because the Boss. Iseman has labored intently with Schwarzenegger, internet hosting his Austrian World Summit on Local weather Points, elevating cash for After College All Stars, and working sturdy man competitions across the globe for the Arnold Sports activities Festivals.

Schwarzenegger has quite a few initiatives within the works, together with the motion comedy The Man with the Bag, wherein he’ll play Santa Claus reverse one other impressively muscled display star, Reacher’s Alan Ritchson within the position of Vance, a former thief who previously made Santa’s naughty record. Adam Shankman (Hairspray) is directing.

SEEfest, co-presented by ELMA (basis for European Languages and Motion pictures in America) runs April 30-Might 7. The pageant will showcase over 50 motion pictures from the culturally wealthy space of East and Southeast Europe. Wednesday opening evening would be the Los Angeles premiere of Romanian filmmaker Bogdan Mureșanu’s acclaimed historic tragicomedy The New Yr That By no means Got here, winner of the FIPRESCI Award and Greatest Movie within the Orizzonti program on the Venice Movie Pageant final 12 months. Set in 1989 across the time of the ouster of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, the movie begins “with the bang of a firecracker in a extremely unlikely pair of palms, successfully kicking off the revolution.”

As we reported earlier this month, SEEfest’s competitors lineup contains DJ Ahmet directed by newcomer Georgi M. Unkovski, winner of 2025 Sundance World Cinema Dramatic Particular Jury Award for Artistic Imaginative and prescient and the Viewers Award. Unkovski’s movie spins the “story of a younger shepherd boy’s love of music and his first expertise with love.” SEEfest additionally will display the most-awarded Jap European movie of the season, the Oscar-nominated The Man Who Might Not Stay Silent directed by Croatian filmmaker Nebojša Slijepčević. The quick movie gained the Palme d’Or eventually 12 months’s Cannes, occurring to win Greatest European Quick on the European Movie Awards and the César Award in France. The movie stars Goran Bogdan (third season of TV’s Fargo) in a chilling true-life story set in 1993 in the course of the struggle within the former Yugoslavia.

SEEfest was based in 2006 by Vera Mijojlić, movie critic and cultural entrepreneur. The pageant has obtained grants from the Academy for Movement Footage Arts and Sciences, recognition from the California State Meeting, Los Angeles County and cities of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills. Serving because the SEEfest’s honorary chair is Bulgarian American actress and singer Irina Maleeva, who was found at age 15 by director Federico Fellini, showing in three of his movies together with Fellini’s Satyricon. Maleeva additionally performed a starring position reverse Orson Welles in The Service provider of Venice, directed by Welles.

SEEfest awards prizes in a number of classes. Serving on the jury for Greatest Function Movie are Tessa Blake, Robert Bailey, and Marlis Pujol. The Greatest Documentary Movie jury contains Sarah Anthony, Alejandra Espasande Bouza, and Gabriel Hayes. Serving on the Greatest Quick Movie jury are Leo Behrens, Michael Cory Davis, and Brenna Malloy.

Jurors Lori Nelson, Todd Thompson, and Jonathan Berman will choose the winner of Greatest Documentary Quick Movie. Greatest Quick Animation Movie features a jury of Omandi Moore-Washington, Rachel Lewis, and Peter Jayne.

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

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