'Nothing in the world is as powerful as an idea whose time has come' (Victor Hugo) In order to understand what makes people the way they are, we ask about their PAST. In order to understand what makes the WORLD the way it is, we ask about its HISTORY. The fact that humankind has got where it is today and that the world is the way it is, is no coincidence - and yet it is still a mystery. MISSION X explores the lives of the great inventors and scientists who made groundbreaking contributions to humanity. MISSION X tracks down the mysteries that triggered spectacular turning points in our history. Alert minds with the courage to go new and different ways, with ideas and a sense of adventure, created the remarkable turns of events that were responsible for making us what we are today. In this documentary film series, ZDF and ZDF Enterprises present epoch-making inventions that paved the way to today's information and knowledge society. Producer Axel Engstfeld, who in 1999 received the Bavarian television award for his production of the ZDF-YLE-ZDF Enterprises series 'The Spell of the North', has immersed himself in the world of long-forgotten inventors. Filming at the original scenes of action following extensive research in archives and museums, his documentaries breathe new life into the spirit of bygone times: in a weave of power, envy, intrigue and betrayal, he has tracked down discoverers who again and again ultimately cleared the way for wisdom and truth. MISSION X is shot principally at the original scenes of action, for example Newfoundland, Mauretania, Gambia or Ireland. To symbolise 'yesteryear', the authors work partly with re-enactments - faithfully and without dialogue. 'Today' is represented by documentary sequences from the 21st century, e. g. in modern bell foundries or showing the laying of heavy-duty cables in the present day. Computer animations provide the connecting time tunnel, enabling the viewer to understand the past, the present and the X that lies in between. Episodes In Pursuit of the Standard Meter The Invisible Web The Diesel Mystery The Victory of the Steam Rocket
