Kulanu presents Re-Emerge: Episode 1 - The Jews of Puerto Rico

VIDEO: Kulanu presents Re-Emerge Episode 1 – The Jews of Puerto Rico

Featuring a discussion with the filmmakers, Dani Rotstein and Patricio Serna. NOTE: The full film was included in the webinar, but only the trailer for the series is included in this recording. Learn more about the RE-EMERGE Project here: https://www.reemergeproject.com/

The RE-EMERGE Project is a nine-part series that explores the history and identity of the Bnei Anusim—descendants of Jewish converts who are now reconnecting with their heritage across Latin America.

RE-EMERGE is an intimate and eye-opening portrait of Latin America’s emerging Jewish communities – ordinary people taking extraordinary steps to reclaim a faith that was once stripped away.

Directed by Jewish filmmaker and educator Dani Rotstein, and produced by Rotstein and Mexican filmmaker Patricio Serna, this short documentary series spotlights communities across Latin America rediscovering their Jewish identity, often after generations of silence.

The first episode is set in Puerto Rico, where a small group of devoted individuals independently built a Jewish life from scratch: learning online, gathering in a repurposed synagogue, and reconnecting with a lost heritage despite resistance from both outside and within the Jewish world.

RE-EMERGE asks what it means to “belong” and invites us to rethink who gets to be part of the Jewish story. This isn’t just a film—it’s a conversation starter, a bridge to forgotten histories, and a celebration of Jewish continuity in unexpected places, even after centuries of repression and forced assimilation.