The 3 directors/writers of these TV movies/ Mini-Series decided to develop these films talking via e-mail, after one of them was invited to a convention for "The New German Cinema" in which not much was changed; so he e-mailed his fellow directors with the question "What New German Cinema? It's nothing."
So he proposed the idea to produce and make really good, analys worthy films for TV. Hence this Trilogy.
"Dreileben" (German) means "Three lives" in english.
"Etwas Besseres als den Tod" (german) the name of the first movie, means "Something better than death" in english.