I attended the Humanitas Master Writers Workshop in Los Angeles Tuesday night, at which Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz were the speakers. The Humanitas Workshops are presented monthly from September through May and feature noted television and film writers as speakers. The Workshops are open to Writers Guild members and other professional-level writers. (Humanitas is an organization founded by Father Ellwood “Bud” Kieser which recognizes the writers of television and film scripts that explore the nature of human values — they present the Humanitas Prize ev ... [Continua a leggere]

We continue our exclusive interview with Ilt Jones, the location manager for the X-Files. The location manager is the one responsible for finding those fabulous locations you see each week on this very popular show. Ilt is also responsible for coordinating all facets of bringing a crew on location. I visited Ilt at Stage 5 on the lot at Twentieth Century Fox in L.A. The crew was dressing the stage when I arrived. Ilt and I visited in the location loft above the stage which features huge location maps on the wall of the greater Los Angeles area, a location manager’s tool o ... [Continua a leggere]

The Official Magazine: How is Season Seven progressing? Spotnitz: If there’s anything I’ve learned, [it's that] I really don’t see what it’s like until the end. You look back and say, “That’s what this year was really [like].” It’s kind of hard when you’re in the midst of it. X-Files Magazine: Will this be the final year for The X-Files? Spotnitz: Nobody knows. It’s David’s last year in his contract. It’s Chris’ last year in his contract. I’m told Gillian has one more year, although ... [Continua a leggere]

Chris Carter has – and always has had – a grand master plan for The X-Files. He had – and unfortunately never got the chance to fully implement – a grand master plan for Harsh Realm. So what doesn’t Carter have a grand master plan for? His life. “There is no grand plan,” admits the 43-year-old writer/director/producer. What Carter does have is a dream. The man behind the paranoid conspiracies of The X-Files, the brooding mysteries of Millennium and the twisted virtual reality of Harsh Realm has a decidedly sunny vision of tomorrow. In it, ... [Continua a leggere]

The initial episodes of the high-concept sci-fi/action show adapted from Andrew Paquette and James Hudnall’s comic book of the same name had received critical praise for its ambition but low ratings. Fox executives concerned about how their fall line-up would fare against that of other networks abruptly cancelled the series, explains executive producer Frank Spotnitz. “It goes without saying, I think it was a terrible decision made by people who were panicked,” Spotnitz says. “I think if these people had been in charge when The X-Files launched, X-Files w ... [Continua a leggere]

X-FILES – INTERIOR – ADAMS HIGH – VIRGINIA (actual location: Rose City High School in Pasadena California): I watch closely as a high school teacher is shoved 100 feet across a school cafeteria by a six long banquet table. I keep rubbing my eyes because I don’t believe what I’m seeing. It looks so real, and I’m only about 15 feet away and can’t see any wires. The actor, not a stunt double, is hurled across this long expanse within seconds. Director Rob Lieberman is at the helm for Season Seven’s episode “Rush” which featu ... [Continua a leggere]

AS FBI AGENT MULDER ON Fox’s hit television series The X-Files, moody actor David Duchovny investigates far-fetched conspiracies and creepy aliens. Now, in a high-profile case, Duchovny is charging the parent of the show’s producer, Fox Entertainment Group, with a dark conspiracy to stiff him on the profits. Whatever the merits of Duchovny’s claim, his lawsuit is doing a great job of illuminating Rupert Murdoch’s media empire. (Fox is an 83% -owned subsidiary of Murdoch’s News Corp.; see story, p. 120.) As a strategist of vertical integration, M ... [Continua a leggere]

Q: In The X-Files’ season premiere (Nov. 14), Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) undergoes an elaborate and dangerous medical procedure that has all sorts of important repercussions for him, not to mention the future of the world. *So what exactly did they do to Mulder?* A: The truth, says X-Files executive producer Frank Spotnitz, is back there – two seasons back to be exact. That’s when Mulder was infected by the black oil (remember?). Although it seemed at the time that the alien virus had been cleared from his system, it was actually just lying dormant – unt ... [Continua a leggere]

In a way, it’s too bad Sunday’s episode of Fox’s “The X-Files” is getting more attention for what happens near the end than it does for its plot. The paranormal series is giving a final send-off to its sort-of-sister “Millennium,” producer Chris Carter’s moody, dark show about visionary ex-FBI profiler Frank Black’s (Lance Henriksen) battle against a shadowy organization near the end of the century. Airing at 8 p.m. on WFLD-Ch. 32, the episode ties up loose ends from the 1996-99 series, which was canceled in May. One of those ... [Continua a leggere]

Now, the conflict has clouded the already uncertain future of the “X-Files.” “I don’t think that the man who is running the network now got the show or even watched it,” Carter told The Post yesterday. “Someone over there made the decision [to yank it]. [Herzog] was the one that delivered the message – so I blame the messenger.” “Harsh Realm,” a military-themed series set in a virtual reality world, struggled to find viewers since its debut on Oct. 8. The bad situation was the result of Fox not heavily promo ... [Continua a leggere]

You don’t have to believe in UFOs or government conspiracies to write for “The X-Files.” “We’re all fairly agnostic on all those subjects…,” says Vince Gilligan, co-executive producer and writer, in a recent phone interview from Los Angeles about what it’s like writing for a hot TV show. “I don’t disbelieve in any of this stuff we write about, but there’s a big difference in not disbelieving it and actively believing it.” “The X-Files” heads into its seventh and perhaps final season this Sunday, N ... [Continua a leggere]

Poor, poor Fox. Imagine the painful musings that are now going through executives’ heads: “No one is watching us … no one is watching us.” The mantra has picked up in recent days. No matter what we do, what we put on (with the exception of “Ally McBeal’s” premiere) the song remains the same. No one is watching Fox. And no one knows exactly why. The numbers tell a particularly brutal tale. Last week – with the World Series airing Tuesday and Wednesday – virtually all Fox’ shows drew under a 10 percent audience share. The ... [Continua a leggere]

“The X-Files” returns Sunday on Fox for its seventh season, scaring and mystifying viewers with its tales of the paranormal and the unexplainable. But though he knows how the cliffhanger that launches the season premiere turns out, the ultimate truth is still out there for the show’s creator, Chris Carter. That is, whether this season will be the end of the line for Carter and stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson–and the show itself. The contracts for Carter and Duchovny, who plays FBI Agent Fox Mulder, are both up this season. And Anderson, who portr ... [Continua a leggere]

VG: Chris Carter is with me as The X-Files launches its 7th season, November the 7th – that’s a bit late if you ask me. But, unfortunately the new series “Harsh Realm,” just got whacked after three episodes, and we can’t figure out just why that is – but I will say, Mr. Carter, sir, that you’re as big a star as the people that are on your show. Isn’t it weird how that happens? CC: Ha – [laughs] hardly. Not today, at least. VG: What happened, with Harsh Realm? CC: It just didn’t get the ratings they had hoped, it d ... [Continua a leggere]

TVGuide Chat: Welcome, Chris! Thanks so much for coming! Chris Carter: Hello, “X-Files” fans throughout the world. Question: Is last season’s season finale the last we are going to be seeing of Agent Spender? (We saw no body.) Chris Carter: Agent Spender is dearly departed. But his ghost will live on. Question: On average, how many days does it take for you to write a script for one episode? Chris Carter: Average is seven to ten days. Question: What gave you the idea to start the show? Chris Carter: I was under contract with a gun to my head. Question: Wha ... [Continua a leggere]