When the Inquisition decreed the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, there were no Jews officially left on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca, and in 1435, the entire Jewish community underwent a massive baptism in order to save them from further persecution.

Filmmaker Stacey Ravel Abarbanel delves into memory, history, and contemporary life in the border town of Columbus, New Mexico, famed for being raided in 1916 by Villa’s army during the Mexican Revolution.

“The Broken Candle” tells the heartwarming tale of Nira, a broken Hanukkah candle who becomes the shamash (“lead candle” of the Hanukkah) on the last night of the Festival of Lights.