On a dreary September evening in 1931, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and their friend and fellow scholar, Hugo Dyson, met for dinner and debate in Lewis's Magdalen College dormitory in Oxford, England. Lewis's transformation from atheist to theist to Christian was based on the insights of Tolkien and Dyson as they engaged in deep conversation about mythology, reality, ritual, imagination and faith. The discussion in that room is at the heart of TOLKIEN & LEWIS: MYTH, IMAGINATION & THE QUEST FOR MEANING. The one-hour documentary explores the fundamental characteristics of myth in a global context, with an emphasis on how it impacts our lives: What traits are common among various cultures and faiths? How does myth inspire the imagination, especially the imaginative process of Tolkien and Lewis? In what ways does faith play into the fantasy and fictional works of Lewis and Tolkien? TOLKIEN & LEWIS: MYTH, IMAGINATION & THE QUEST FOR MEANING engages scholars from various spiritual and academic viewpoints while challenging viewers to draw their own conclusions about the meaning of life and the role that mythology and imagination play in determining belief.
