The first, summer edition of the International Festival of Multiculturalism – “Castelwave” will be held in the authentic ambience of the House of Nobel Laureate Ivo Andrić in Herceg Novi, from September 18 to 20, 2026. The festival, which is organized by NGO “Trabakul” with the support of JUK “Hercegfest”, was designed with the vision of becoming a permanent cultural bridge that celebrates the richness of diversity and encourages intercultural dialogue between Herceg Novi and Montenegro with Europe and the world.

During the three festival days, the audience will have the opportunity to watch the programs of renowned artists and performers from Japan, Germany, Turkey and Serbia, who connect Tokyo, Berlin and Belgrade with Herceg Novi with their original works. In addition to this September edition, the festival will also have its winter edition in March.

A rich and exclusive three-day program of the festival;

Friday, September 18 (at 6 pm and 7 pm) Based on the principles of harmony, respect, peace and purity, the Festival opens with a traditional Japanese tea ceremony, which is on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Japan. Due to the great interest, the ceremony in the surroundings of Andrić’s house will be held in two times – at 6 pm and at 7 pm. The program will be led by an educator from the famous Edosenko tea school from Japan – Milijana Vujakli (Belgrade) with a guest from Japan, Ai Keto (Tokyo), a master of calligraphy of the third order. Along with the ritual of tea preparation, Keto will give a short presentation about the traditional kimono and the Japanese way of dealing. Holding a tea ceremony in the House of Ivo Andrić carries special symbolism, since it was Andrić who wrote “The Story of Japan” in his work Nemira and was the first to mention the word Japan in our literature.

Saturday, September 19 (at 6 p.m.) “Tribute to Andrić” through a Turkish-German performance: The famous Turkish-German artist Nezaket Ekiči will perform a unique artistic performance inspired by the novel “On the Drina bridge”. With the participation of three high school students from Herceg Novi, the artist will evoke the time of creation of this literary work in a specific way, while quotes from the novel will be read in Montenegrin, German and Turkish languages.

Sunday, September 20 (at 7 p.m.) Exclusive Montenegrin premiere of the film about Maga Magazinović: On the last night of the festival, the audience can expect the Montenegrin premiere of the experimental documentary film “Maga 1909”, directed by Branka Pavlović from Belgrade. The film was made in a German-Serbian co-production and brings a unique story told through dance about the famous journalist, intellectual and feminist Maga Magazinović. As Andrić’s contemporary, Magazinović wrote for the newspaper Politika, in which Andrić also published his stories, and the film in a specific way evokes the epoch and time in which they both created.