Belgrade – Capital of Italian Creativity 2026: Play with It
“Play with IT” is the flagship cultural initiative of the Embassy of Italy in Serbia for 2026, celebrating the connections between Italy and Serbia through art, technology, business, science, music, fashion, gastronomy, and sport.
Running from April to June 2026 in Belgrade, the festival brings together Italian and Serbian institutions, artists, educators, and creatives through workshops, events, talks, and interactive programs inspired by the concept of play as a driver of innovation, collaboration, and creativity.
Play with Design
The first of the five program sections, “Play with Design”, took place at Silosi Belgrade from April 15 to 22 and highlighted the combination of Italian excellence and young Serbian creative talent. Organized in collaboration with NABA – Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti, the textile company Mantero, and with the support of Belgrade Fashion Week and Festival drugačije mode, the program included the “Future Makers” exhibition, the launch of a creative challenge awarding two scholarships for Master’s studies at NABA, and workshops dedicated to sustainable fashion.
Play with Design was a great success – Italian and Serbian designers were exceptional, offering us a glimpse into the future!
In Italian culture, Play is imagination in motion: bending conventions, transforming materials, connecting with others, and breathing new life into tradition while embracing innovation. It is the bridge that unites cultures, people, and visions of the future.
In Serbia, Play is expression and resilience – a bold, authentic way of creating, where creativity grows from emotion, energy, and strong cultural roots. Together, Play becomes a shared language – a bridge that connects cultures, people, and visions of the future.
Through the Play with It project, the two cultures connected, exchanging ideas and enjoying each other’s creations in the field of design.
Observe, create and play with us.
Play with Sound
Play with Sound is the music segment of the Festival of Italian Creativity in Serbia promoted by the Embassy of Italy in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute in Belgrade.
The initiative brought together students from public and private high schools in Belgrade through a series of musical activities, workshops, and performances organized in collaboration with the “Giuseppe Verdi” Conservatory of Turin. More than one hundred students, musicians, and young Italian and Serbian talents participated in the comprehensive program titled “Improludens” (playing through improvisation), dedicated to experimentation with digital sound, innovation, and music education.
In recent days, “Play with Sound” was also implemented in various public and private preschool institutions across the Serbian capital, transforming educational spaces into places of listening, discovery, and creativity, while introducing the youngest participants to Italian music through interactive activities and sound workshops led by educators from the association “Quanto Basta” from Bologna, in cooperation with the Italian Cultural Institute in Belgrade.
The program will conclude on May 16 at 7 PM at the Youth Center of Belgrade with the concert “Journey Through Italian Music”, organized in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute in Belgrade. The concert will pay tribute to the internationally renowned Italian musical tradition of recent decades and will be performed by the acclaimed conductor and composer Maurizio Filardo and his band, featuring Tijana Bogićević and Stefan Zdravković.
“Music represents an extraordinary instrument of dialogue between cultures and generations, capable of stimulating curiosity, imagination, and shared experiences from early childhood,” said the Italian Ambassador to Serbia, Luca Gori. He added that through the “Play with Sound” initiative, “we wish to place the universal language of music at the center of our cultural activities in Serbia, creating opportunities for encounters and togetherness that unite education, creativity, and cultural diplomacy.
Play, record, create.
Play with Sport
On the occasion of celebrating 100 years of the Ducati brand, in collaboration with Burnout and NAVAK, a special edition of the traditional event “Ducati Days – Centenario” is presented.
The full-day training at the NAVAK track is designed to enhance riding skills in a safe and controlled environment. The program is open to riders of all levels — from beginners looking to build confidence to experienced riders aiming to refine their technique and fully explore the potential of Ducati motorcycles.
With the support of the official Ducati instructor team from Bologna, participants will have the opportunity to improve their riding through a combination of theoretical and practical sessions, as well as test the latest models and advanced safety systems.
Experience the perfect blend of Italian design, technology, and performance — where safety meets the passion for riding
Registration: ducatiserbia.rs/ducati-days-navak
Full speed ahead!
Play with Tech
The Ambassador of Italy to Serbia, Luca Gori, opened the “Human-Centered Innovation” Forum, the fourth event of the Festival of Italian Creativity “Play with IT”, promoted by the Embassy of Italy in Serbia in cooperation with Italian and Serbian institutional, academic, and business partners.
Alongside Ambassador Luca Gori, the Innovation Forum featured Mihailo Vesović, Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, Marco Gay, President of Zest and the Industrial Union of Turin, as well as representatives of Italian and Serbian institutions, universities, research centers, startups, investors, and companies, including Arduino, Ferrero, Impact Hub Belgrade, Confindustria Serbia, the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the University of Belgrade, several Serbian science and technology parks, and the Palace of Science. Participants discussed the opportunities offered by technological innovation in the fields of smart cities, automation, artificial intelligence, and innovative entrepreneurship. Particular attention was devoted to the role of startups, acceleration programs, and venture capital in transforming innovative ideas into solutions capable of generating economic value and social impact.
The warm-up event, held the previous evening at the Ambassador’s Residence, included mentoring sessions organized by Arduino and Impact Hub Belgrade, as well as networking opportunities among startups, companies, investors, and research centers. The initiative also featured presentations of the best projects selected through the Agri-Bot and Ancient Intelligence hackathons, organized in the days leading up to the Innovation Forum. The finalist teams presented their solutions to representatives of companies, investors, and other stakeholders, offering concrete examples of how new technologies can foster the modernization of the agri-food sector, as well as services for individuals and senior citizens through the integration of artificial intelligence, robotics, and advanced automation solutions.
“Innovation is currently one of the pillars of the growing cooperation between Italy and Serbia: universities, research centers, startups, companies, and institutions are called upon to work together to transform ideas and talent into concrete development opportunities,” stated Luca Gori, Ambassador of Italy to Serbia.
He added: “With this Innovation Forum and the two related hackathons, we aim to promote a human-centered innovation model capable of combining technological progress, sustainability, and economic growth, while valuing the contribution of younger generations and strengthening dialogue between our two countries in the fields of scientific research and artificial intelligence.”
Think Digital.
Create Together.
Play with Food
A culinary program combining tradition and innovation through contemporary gastronomy (The Residence of the Ambassador of Italy, June19)
The event marked the grand finale of “Play with IT” – the Festival of Italian Creativity in the World, bringing the festival to a close with an evening dedicated to Italian gastronomic culture and tradition, recently recognized by UNESCO as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
“Play with Food” brought together a wide range of partners, including the Associazione Pizzaiuoli Napoletani (Neapolitan Pizzaiuoli Association), which presented its “La pizza è femmina” (“Pizza is Female”) initiative in Belgrade. The project promotes women’s entrepreneurship in the hospitality sector and highlights the role of women in preserving and advancing the art of Neapolitan pizza-making.
A special focus of the event was its educational and inclusive dimension. More than 50 children from the Belgrade Down Syndrome Association, a residential home for children and young people without parental care, the Svratište Day Center, and the “Veljko Ramadanović” School for Children with Disabilities, accompanied by their teachers and caregivers, participated in interactive workshops dedicated to the art of authentic Neapolitan pizza-making.
Throughout the evening, guests enjoyed a selection of specialties from the Italian culinary tradition, accompanied by a musical program celebrating Italian repertoire. The event concluded with an open-air screening of the film Follemente, subtitled in Serbian, offering visitors a final opportunity to experience contemporary Italian culture through cinema.
For more information: