isa Gradnitzer

Introduction by
& Todd
Tom Braidwood
Pittso
D
a.k.a. Frohike of the Lone Gunmen

This book was not prepared, approved, licensed, or endorsed by

Twentieth Century Fox or Ten-Thirteen Productions.
 7.

ON LOCATION WITH THE X-FILES

ON LOCATION WITH THE X-FILES
Louisa Gradnitzer & Todd Pittson

ARSENAL PULP PRESS

VANCOUVER
X MARKS THE SPOT
Copyright © 1999 by Louisa Gradnitzer and Todd Pittson

Second Printing: 1999

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in

any part by any means without the written permission of the pub-
lisher, except by a reviewer, who may use brief excerpts in a
review.

777© X-FilesIs a trademark of Twentieth Century Fox. This book

was not prepared, approved, licensed, or endorsed by Twentieth
Century Fox or Ten-Thirteen Productions.

ARSENAL PULP PRESS

103-1014 Homer Street
Vancouver, BC
Canada V6B 2W9
www.arsenalpulp.com

^ The publisher gratefully acknowledges the support of the

^> Canada Council for the Arts and the B.C. Arts Council for
~"===|SS= its publishing program.

The publisher gratefully acknowledges the support of the

C^ctnadS Government of Canada through the Book Publishing Industry
Development Program for its publishing activities.

Book design by Lisa Eng-Lodge

Printed and bound in Canada

CANADIAN CATALOGUING IN PUBLICATION DATA:

Gradnitzer, Louisa.
X marks the spot

ISBN 1-55152-066-4

1. X-files (Television program). I. Pittson, Todd. II. Title.

PN1992.77.X34G72 1999 791 .45'72 C99-910359-8
 9 3 1

CONTENTS
Map 6

Acknowledgements 9

Foreword by Tom Braidwood 1

Authors' Note 1

Introduction 14

The Process 16

Prologue 1

THE PILOT FEBRUARY APRIL 1993

- - 21

SEASON ONE JULY - 1993 - APRIL 1994 29

SEASON TWO JULY - 1994 - APRIL 1995 53

SEASON THREE JULY - 1995 - APRIL 1996 83

SEASON FOUR JULY - 1996 - MAY 1997 117

SEASON FIVE - AUGUST 1997 - MAY 1998 153

Epilogue 183

Postscript 1 84
 m
lAPLE RDDGE

Albion

LANIGLEY

OOTE ROCK
1.0 5.0 .,
miles
1.0 o 5.0
km
CANADA
u's'a^
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Todd
To Sally for her love and patience, to my mother
for her nurturing, and to Francesca for the wonder
which is new life.

Louisa
For Mom, Dad, Kate, and Callan.

Weextend special thanks to Rob Murdoch, Alan Bartolic,

Rick Fearon, AInslie S. Wiggs, Dave Caughlan,
Michael Bobroff, Robyn Gelka, and Woody Morrison
for their years of long-term commitment
to the locations department.

Thanks to Chris Carter for providing us with the

wave of the decade and the ride of a lifetime, and
to the crew and cast members with whom
we shared five years of our lives.

Thanks us
to the following for allowing
use their photographs:
to
Amir Barsoum, Alan Bartolic, Michael Bobroff,
Tom Braidwood, Robyn Gelka, Frank Haddad,
Greg Loewen, Vivien Nishi, Patrick Stark
FOREWORD:
THE X-PERIENCE
On a warm spring night ten thousand fans sit motionless,
watching the final moments of the game. As the boy leans for-
ward over the chessboard, a gunshot rips through the silence
and his opponent is thrown back, the impact of the bullet

smashing him full in the chest. Pandemonium, in a blind panic,

the screaming crowd is up out of their seats and stampeding for

the door. And then, above the roar, a bellowing voice yells:
"Cut!"
The cameras stopped rolling and the crowd froze.
Everyone calmly and quietly returned to their seats to
await further instructions. I stood in the centre of
Vancouver's General Motors Place, lowering the micro-
phone to my side. Surveying the crowd as they settled
back in, i was awed by the scale of the scene The X-Files
crew was attempting to shoot. I was equally amazed at
how attentive and responsive this huge audience was.
As one of the two first assistant directors on the show,
it was my responsibility to maintain order and push the
production forward, it required careful planning and the
complete co-operation of everyone - crowd and crew alike.

Really, only myself and the director were fully aware of the
complex amount of work to be accomplished in the few
short hours we had available. The crew and the crowd had
to trust us to guide them through the confusion.
The scene at G1V1 Place was an enormous undertaking
for everyone. 1 remember at the time shaking my head in

disbelief at the incredible challenge. But then, that was

and is The X-Files.

It began as a dark atmospheric TV series rooted in

cautionary paranoia. For those of us who started with the

show in I 993 it was just another job, another notch on
our resumes. But five years later we would look back and
realize how this passionate and unique experience had
not only changed the look of television but had changed
our lives as well. Over those five years the demands of the
show grew exponentially, as did our satisfaction in taking
on the challenge - and winning - on a week-to-week basis.

The production of The X-Files became all-consuming.

Twelve- to sixteen-hour days, five days a week, for ten

months at a time. The crew became a surrogate family.

The bottom line was rooted in loyalty and friendship and
the mutual bond was working towards making the best
show possible.
Aside from my production role on the show, I have also
had the good fortune of acting in the series. Through a
11
 twist of fate during the first season I was asked to play
the character of "Frohike," one of the triad called "The
Lone Gunmen." That first brief scene 1 participated in

started me on a journey to destinations never imagined.

The continuing adventure has taken me to Los Angeles,
Chicago, iVIilwaukee, and New York, just to name a few
places. I've been to conventions, appeared on trading
cards and t-shirts, and even performed in a rock video.
Who would have ever thought?
And who would have ever thought that The X-Files
would grow into the incredible success that it has? For
those of us involved, the show was a unique experience.
For five seasons, as an assistant director and an actor, I

had the pleasure of working - on and off the set - with

multi-talented producers, a myriad of wonderful actors,
and an incredible crew; hundreds of gifted and dedicated
people who, at the end of five years, could proudly claim
a share in the success of the series.
in at GM Place was a culmina-
an odd way, the evening
tion of was The X-Files; a chess game, like the
all that
game we played every week with every story and every
shot. And an audience who waited patiently (and anx-
iously) for the outcome. That night at GJVI Place was
much more than another day of shooting - it was an
event. As ! stood centre-stage, I realized that the audience
- so alert and synergetic - were there not just to be part
of the episode, but also to say, thank you to the show and
all that it contributed to Vancouver.
It's curious what fragmented moments stand out in
your memory. Several months later was sitting outside
I

Los Angeles International Airport waiting for my luggage

to arrive when a young woman approached me. She
looked at me for a few moments before asking. You were
at GM Place, weren't you? I nodded. She smiled and contin-
ued. That was your night, wasn't it? And it struck me at

that moment that she was absolutely right, but more

right than she could know. Because really, she was
speaking for the entire cast and crew, and for Vancouver.
What she was really saying was. That was your show,
wasn't it?

And for five years that's exactly what it was.

- Tom Braidwood
Vancouver
May 1999

12
AUTHORS NOTE
The locations described in X Marks the Spot do not
represent a comprehensive list of every location used by
The X-Files during its five-year sojourn in Vancouver,

Canada. That is not the intention of this book. The

locations represented were chosen for their visual

significance, their importance to the show, and their

importance to us.
is important to explain and differen-
Some locations no longer exist. Others have been It
tiate the use of the term "mythology"
transformed beyond recognition. Sites such as Woodlands within the context of X Marks the Spot.
For our purposes, several references
and Riverview Hospitals have played host to more sets
are made to crew mythology, which we
than can reasonably be counted. Still others are not listed
define as the body of fact and fiction
out of respect for the owners' right to privacy. which evolved over the course of the
Similarly, views expressed herein are in no way series into something greater than the

representative of official Fox policy. They are, rather,

sum total of its parts. Call It fable. Call
it legend. It constitutes those behind-
opinions based on our varied and colorful experiences as the-scenes elements of physical pro-
location managers on The X-Files during its Vancouver duction wherein our anecdotes and
run. All factual errors are ours and ours alone. stories reside. Shared experience.
In one of the numerous intervie\A/s
And while every attempt has been made to maintain
given by series creator Chris Carter, he
accuracy of fact - including detail checks with former
crew members and technicians - no two individuals, when
3D carefully differentiates the
types of shows embodied
two basic
inThe X-
Files. The first is the stand-alone — or
asked, recounted a story in exactly the same way. This
genre — show, by the "horror"
typified
we must attribute to the vagaries of memory. Still, you can
episode. The other is the "mythology"
be assured that these stories are true. show. These are the episodes which
We can only hope that this book will stimulate fond examine — on a continuing arc — sub-
ject matter related to covert govern-
memories for those associated with The X-Files during its
ment conspiracy and cover-up or an
Canadian run, while providing others with a rare window alien presence among us.
into the making of television history from the unique It is crucial not to confuse the context

perspective of the location manager. of storytelling within which Chris' defini-

tion of "mythology" appears with the
What Chris Carter wanted, he generally got. And so it
production context from which our use
should have been, considering the time and energy he put of this word derives.
into his show. That aside, a sense of loyalty developed
seldom equaled in this business. And that was true for all

departments. We, as crew members, were more than will-

ing to run that extra mile, even if it meant (as it often did)

more headaches and an expanded workload. The results

almost always translated to the screen as unique and

unusual locations, elaborate sets, very creepy visual
effects and technically challenging props, in short, very
big television.

13
X Marks the Spot

^ INTRODUCTION
CREATIVE GEOGRAPHY
There's an aspect of movie-making which involves
Visual Alchemy the manipulation of locales and geographies to portray

Sometime in the last half-century a or approximate the oft-distant "real thing." The back-
myth was born: the camera never lies. streets of Malta playing a crowded Turkish bazaar
After all, this instrument has emerged (Midnight Express). The English countryside (with a few

as perhaps the most faithful documen- well-placed palm trees) playing the Central Highlands of
tarist of the 20th century, recording Vietnam (Full Metal jacket). A defunct gravel quarry in

images and events just as they are British Columbia, Canada playing the New Mexico desert
revealed to the human eye. The perfect (The X-Files). The term used to describe this conjuror's
Kodak Moment, complete in every trick Is creative geography.
detail.
An aerial stock shot can establish a setting such as
But wait a minute. There's a digital
New York, complete with distinct landmarks such as the
printer atmy local drugstore which
Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. Icons, in
reproduces photographs from prints.
Details can be enhanced, flaws erased.
a sense, which are recognizable around the world. But
Elements of an image can be isolated filming on the streets of New York is costly, frustrating,

and enlarged, or simply eliminated and time-consuming. That's what studio backlots are for.
altogether. The very essence of the That's what other smaller, less chaotic cities are for.
photographed image — that held sacred Creative geography, and the use of composite imagery,
for so long — can be manipulated for informs our ability to visualize a burrough or neighbour-
under ten bucks each, with the resulting hood in some city or country and accept it for what it is
print arguably of "better" quality than the
New
original.
This
of the
is, of course, only the thin
wedge. The movie industry
edge S not. A few scenes

intercut with
shot on location
with an action sequence shot on a Los Angeles street,
many more scenes
in

shot on a Universal
York intercut

Studios backlot, provide the overall impression of a story

(which includes television) expends
incredible amounts of time, money,
set in New York, even if virtually none of the production

and expertise In the recreation of reality. was, in fact, shot in New York.

The technological innovations Agent Scully walks down a quiet street and enters her
pioneered by digital effects companies Washington, D.C. apartment building. (A location in

in the last decade are amazing.

truly Vancouver's West End.) Inside, she fumbles with her
Witness the ability to manipulate nega- keys, then enters her apartment. (A standing set on a
tive imagery by erasing and reinventing soundstage several miles away in North Vancouver.) We
backgrounds, creating believable accept the physical contiguity of these two elements -
pitched battles in outer space, or
exterior and interior - because of the process of seamless
recreating the last hours before the
editing as it relates to that other basic tenet of cinematic
sinking of a famous ocean liner.
storytelling, suspension of disbelief. What makes the differ-
Such expertise suggests a problem
with another myth: seeing is believing.
ence here is good direction, good production design, cre-
If what we're seeing on the screen is a ative use of locations, and smart writing.

computer-generated, digitally-enhanced And while location filming has certainly helped to

recreation, this can be, at best, a half- inform our perception of distant locales, it remains very
truth. A more apt saying for today's day much the preserve of large feature films and, in any
and age might better read: the camera event, a flawed process. When Jackie Chan waterskis
always lies. barefoot across an urban waterway called False Creek in

Rumble in the Bronx, those rugged mountains looming in

the near background seem oddly out of place for New

York. And so they should, since Rumble in the Bronx was
14
filmed almost entirely in Vancouver, with only a small
Second Unit being sent to New York to "establish" the

locale, most notably the Brooklyn Bridge.

Television does not have the luxury of time or money to

continent-hop in search of authentic locations, which is

what makes creative geography so crucial to the process.

IVluch has been said of the Lower Mainland's ability to

double as transparent "Anywhere, U.S.A." In the last

decade, countless television series and movies attest to
this. What gives this region its greatest appeal (monetary
exchange rates aside) is the wide range of geographical
locales accessible within thirty minutes of the downtown
core, whether it's the rainforests of Costa Rica and the
Pacific Northwest, the flatlands of North Texas, or the
Pilot: the first episode of what could
wilds of Siberia.
be (but is not always) a new televi-
And while the quality of light (or lack thereof) played a
sion series.
starring role on The X-Files, it is the Lower iVIainland -
and Vancouver itself - which must be credited with
putting in a consistently strong performance. On a dark-
hearted television series fictionally located in a different
American city or state each week, this continued diversity
of location and look
challenges and achievements.
has been one of the show's great t)
During its five-year run in Canada, residents, fans,
and tourists alike were often surprised to learn that

The X-Files had called Vancouver "home" ever since the Often, Chris — xwhile writing scripts
filming of the pilot in IViarch 1993. The show stands as a would personally call department
wonderful tribute to the scenic diversity of the Lower heads to make inquiries about
IVIainland, running like a five-year advertisement for locations and sets.

Tourism British Columbia.

Ironically, most viewers - particularly those in other
countries - didn't see it that way. It was simply assumed
by many that the imagery exported around the world
each week was more or less true to the American-ness of
its purported settings.
As location managers, this incredulity was perhaps the
greatest possible compliment paid to us. If the truth is out
there, then so are the locations.

15
X Marks the Spot

THE PROCESS
Because so much of 777© X-Files Each episode of The X-Files was typically allocated eight
was shot on location, the produc- days and eight days of Main Unit
for preparation (prep)
tion company felt that two location shooting. Once a script was received in prep, a concept
managers were needed. Louisa meeting was scheduled to discuss the overall look of the
and Todd location managed show, as well as any specific requirements. Technical sur-
alternating episodes.
veys, during which department heads toured the locations
to be used in filming, took place on Day Six of prep. On
Day Seven, a production meeting was held. Day Eight was
a mad scramble as everyone prepared for the first day of

A location manager, as defined by shooting.

the Directors Guild of Canada:

". searches, surveys, and
. .
CONCEPT MEETINGS
secures locations for the approval
At the concept meeting, department heads assembled
of the Employer in consultation
with the Director and arranges for
in the boardroom, adhering to the rigid seating order

the same. . .
." In reality, location that evolved over the first two seasons. Nameplates in

managers do much more. front of certain seats reinforced the importance of the
"knights" around the rectangular table. A telephone
connection to Los Angeles - to Chris if he was not in

Vancouver, and other L.A. -based staff - was established

and script discussions commenced. Each department head
On the technical survey for the pilot had a chance to ask questions and express ideas. There
episode, director Robert Mandel were sometimes murmurs about forthcoming rewrites by
was eager to return to home and t> Chris and there were often concerns about a script's
abandoned us in favour of an earli- requirements given the time constraints of the schedule
er flight to L.A. A survey without a and air dates. The marching orders from L.A. were simple:
director is like a ship without a try to stay on budget, but, most importantly, do not - ever
captain, so we spent the rest of the - miss an airdate.
afternoon devising our own shots,
staging our
away the
own
hours.
action, and idling
TECHNICAL SURVEYS
The location technical survey brought together all
elements of preproduction in one (very often long) day

of Q&A. The survey provided all departmental heads

with an opportunity to visit each location (and sets,

where applicable) in advance to discuss the director's

requirements for that location and ensure that everyone
was "on the same page" when it came to camera posi-
tions, lighting, special effects needs, special equipment
requirements, actor and stunt actor action, and work truck
and crew parking arrangements.
Technical surveys were the big day for the location
manager. We had to be almost omnipresent in our ability
to ferret out and decipher mumbled conversations twenty
The last technical survey: (left to right)
feet away, and provide real answers to the many questions
construction coordinator Rob Maier, produc-
tion designer Graeme Murray, Louisa, and being posed from all directions at once. Any last-minute
first assistant director Tom Braidwood. "surprises" usually surfaced on this day.

16
 Surveys typically departed the production office at
10 a.m. and returned when the itinerary was complete.
Depending on the number of locations and the distance
sometimes meant as late as 8 p.m. The size
travelled, this Wine complemented the technical
survey lunch twice a season:
of the survey crew varied from episode to episode, but
before Christmas hiatus and at sea-
generally numbered about twenty. The mode of transport
son's end. During the lunch for "Talitha
evolved over the years, encompassing everything from
Cumi" (3x24), equal bottles of red and
airport shuttle buses (not a very comfortable way to white wine were placed on the table.
spend eight hours of one's life) to small coaches (bad air However, only two people drank white
conditioning and no washroom) to full-size passenger wine: Tom Braidwood and Al Campbell.
tour buses (the only way to go). Crew members became At our first location stop after lunch,
very territorial about seating, expecting the same seat Tom disappeared. He was eventually
each trip. This was only problematic when an additional discovered dumpster diving in the alley
crew member tagged along. Unknowingly sitting in some- behind Asian Imports, retrieving a sup-
ply of new wooden accordion fans.
one else's "designated" seat forced a domino effect,
Back on the bus, and with a smile on
skewing the entire arrangement.
his face, Tom distributed his gifts.
The and the knowledge of the driver was very
ability
Months later we discovered that the
much a crapshoot at the hands of the charter bus fans were infested with termites, as evi-
company. On one occasion, a driver - barely able to denced by the expanding piles of saw-
navigate his bus off the North Shore Studios lot - quietly dust in our offices.
informed me that he had no practical knowledge of the
Lower IVIainland. He had been selected as a last-minute
replacement while his usual run was between Vancouver
and Calgary.
The "event" around which each technical survey
revolved was lunch. More often than not, a good lunch
meant a good technical survey and a bad lunch spelled
t
disaster. For better or for worse, surveys came to be
remembered more for their lunches than for the actual
came Executive producer Bob
survey itself, in a way, they to define crew dynamic
Goodwin asked for a lunch at a
and morale.
top-notch restaurant during the
No one understood this better than executive producer
surveyfor "Quagmire" (3x22). He
Bob Goodwin, who was always ready with a dining sug- planned to ask key grip Al Campbell
gestion should we come up short. True, his choices were to return for Season Four, and
usually at the high end of the dining spectrum, but they expected Al would more easily
were always appreciated by a crew hungry for a new din- agree if he was distracted by a
ing experience. As one unidentified crew member once good meal. Unfortunately, Al's meal
postulated: "There has to be some correlation between arrived after the rest of us had
good production values and good tech survey lunches." eaten and were ready to leave.
The key to a good meal was three-fold: we had to be in Bob waited for another day to ask
Al to stay with the show.
and out in one hour, the service had to be efficient, and
the food had to be of a quality and variety as to please
the varying tastes of the crew. Restaurants offering such
service almost always became "repeaters." Choosing a
restaurant was based on the actual locations itinerary.
Bills for these lunches averaged six to nine hundred
dollars (tip included) for twenty people. A significantly
larger bill for a lunch at La Belle Auberge in Ladner

17
 "

X Marks the Spot

resulted in this fine restaurant being dropped from the

repeater list. Another sneak visit to this restaurant on the
tech survey for "The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06),
directed by Chris, caused shock waves in the accoun-
tants.

Overall, as the show got bigger, so did the lunch

Lunch at Nick's Spaghetti House during
bills.

"Ghost in the Machine" (1x06) cost $231.12.

Lunch at II Giardino during "The Pine Bluff Variant"
(5x18) was $997.74.

PRODUCTION MEETINGS
The final review of the entire script occurred during
the production meeting. The first assistant director syn-
opsized each scene, and allowed each department head
their last chance to voice outstanding concerns in a group
setting and to provide progress reports on prep.
During these meetings executive producer Bob
Goodwin would sketch architectural renderings of
Victorian houses. An average production meeting
lasted for ninety minutes. A short meeting usually
had Bob rushing to finish his sketch.

The last supper. From left to right, top: Another late night for Second Unit.
Michael Bobroff, Rick Fearon, Alan Bartolic;
middle: Shirley Ingct. Louisa, Todd;
bottom: Al Campbell, Bob Goodwin,
Tom Braidivood, Chris Carter, "Bucky.

18
PROLOGUE (TP)

I remember well the day that the official announce-

ment finally came that The X-Files would not be staying

in Vancouver for Season Six. It was mid-afternoon

Friday, March 27 and I was sitting at my desk. Louisa

was at the 2400 Motel on Kingsway with the shooting

crew, overseeing the filming of scenes for the "The Pine

Bluff Variant" (5x18). Needless to say, there had been

much speculation on this topic for months, most of it in

the media. As Tom Crowe of the B.C. Film Commission

explained: "We were getting 'x' number of calls a day

from citizens wondering if the latest rumour they'd heard

was true . . . ! was telling them they'd got the wrong

number . . . they should have been calling the local

newspapers, who seemed to have a direct line to Fox

lOOth episode wrap party. Left to right:

network's executive offices." Gaffer Dave Tickeli, Louisa, production co-

ordinator Anita Truelove, director David Nutter,
My phone rang and when I picked it up, Chris was and construction co-ordinator Rob Maier.

on the

informed
line.

me
He sounded extremely disappointed as he
of the network's decision to move the show
t
to Los Angeles. I recall saying something inadequate

like, "That's really too bad, but thanks for taking the

time to call in person," as we ended the conversation.

After five years of working closely with this gifted

individual and our extended family, I was stunned by

the sense of impending loss. And although I think most

of us believed the writing was on the wall, it still came

as a shock when the word finally came. This was
Cenny-op Murray Chisolm baclistagc at CM
evident by the range of emotions shown when Chris Place.

travelled to set later that afternoon to formally

announce the decision to the shooting crew, it was

certainly not the decision he had been pressing for

and whether it came about as a result of an executive

decision or a promise made to an actor mattered little.

It was the end result which weighed in.

19
THE PILOT FEBRUARY - APRIL 1993

A..

In March of 1993, production manager Lisa Richardson, with whom

I had worked on several previous shows, hired me to be location

manager for the Pilot. None of us knew who Chris was, but when he

greeted his new crew for the first time his passion, his kindness, and

a suggestion of his perseverance reverberated through everybody.

The script for "The X-Files" was refreshing and innovative. Since the

show was presenting new ideas, it was important that we find new

locations. We scouted unknown territories within the Lower Mainland

and discovered alien worlds. What became the "look" of the show - a

mystique associated with the dark, rainy environment - was as much

a result of forging ahead at all costs as it was an articulated vision.

Chris had been thrown into an unknown city, and was going to turn

its geographical diversity to his advantage, making The X-Files a show

people would soon be talking about.

X Marks the Spot

THE X-FILES

Medical doctor Dana Scully is assigned by FBI directors to

observe agent Fox Mulder. Scully's first case with Mulder takes
her to Oregon, where Mulder believes high school students
found dead in the forest are victims of alien abductions.

During filming, our key grip fell into

one of the "graves" and broke his leg.

GRAVEYARD
QUEEN ELIZABETH PARK,
CAMBIE ST. AND 33RD AVE. VANCOUVER
We returned to this location to
shoot a cemetery for "Kaddish"
The most difficult location to find was the "knoll"
(4x12), occupying this portion of
setting of a graveyard. After an endless search I suggested
the park for nearly three weeks in
the obvious: Queen Elizabeth Park, a large public park in
late November. Special effects
the heart of the city. It was the first time that this park, a
spent the entire time draining the
prime tourist site, was used for a graveyard and since
grave plot of water.
then, over nineteen graveyard sets have been filmed there.
On the night of shooting, rain towers were positioned
on the upper road along with two lighting cranes, creat-
ing what are "normal" Vancouver conditions. The numer-
ous takes in the freezing rain soaked Gillian Anderson
and chilled her to the bone; a suitable Vancouver baptism
t) for her. On Day Two, it was decided that the semi-truck
accident scene could be filmed that night on the road
leading to the park. With last minute approval from the
City, we were able to pull off the scene.

Exterior shots of the psychiatric hos-

pital were taken at the Westlawn
building, which is now condemned
due to interior asbestos exposure.

PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL
RiVERVIEW HOSPITAL SITE,
500 LOUGHEED HWY., PORT COQUITLAM

This location marked the first meeting with producer

Bob Goodwin, who would later become a executive
producer and director of The X-Files. Crease Clinic, a
vacant hospital site at Riverview, offered the best and
most practical sets for the interior of the psychiatric clinic.
Bob had just completed the pilot for Birdland (a shortlived
ABC series) and was waiting for the producers of that
show to hire him for their series. In the interim, he
booked Crease Clinic for a year at the price of one
Canadian dollar. We approached Bob for use of the
space, which we got for $500 a day.

22
 PILOT
FBI BOARDROOM/PENTAGON WAREHOUSE
KNOWLEDGE NETWORK.
4344 MATHISSI PL., BURNABY

This locationwas originally scouted for an FBI head-

quarters which could be filmed during regular work hours.
For a price, anything is possible. While touring the site
Igot sidetracked in the warehouse which housed
millions of journals that were organized in racks that
were thirty feet high. There was no doubt, we had our
Pentagon files site.

The warehouse was the focal point, but in order to

facilitate filming schedules, the FBI boardroom was also
created here.
Sincewe were filming during the regular work day,
lightswere positioned in and around active workers.
One woman was quietly working in her cubicle with
equipment clamped everywhere, reflecting light onto her For the appearance of the
first

computer screen. When asked if the lights were a prob- CigaretteSmoking Man, special
permission was required to allow
lem, she enthusiastically told us that we were no bother.
"smoking" in a public building.
In following seasons, alternative warehouses were

scouted, but none suited Chris' vision, necessitating

return visits to the Knowledge Network.

FBI BULLPEN/MULDER'S OFFICE/FBI HALLWAY

CANADIAN BROADCASTING CORP. (CBC),
800 HAMILTON ST.. VANCOUVER t)
The infamous Washington FBI headquarters: a nightmare
to scout. Every location presented to the producers and
directors was somehow inadequate. Photos of the actual
Many of the names on the desk
interior of the Edgar ). Hoover building were sent to us for
nameplates in the FBI bullpen are
comparision.
those of crew members.
The open-plan bullpens typically seen in film do not
exist today. They have all been converted into semi-
private partitioned cubicles, hardwired with complex
mazes of wires that cannot be removed.
The CBC television newsroom was the most promising
bullpen set but there were compromises, such as only
being able to film on Fridays after 10 p.m. To schedule a
full day, Mulder's office was created in the basement of the
CBC building, which was in and
keeping with the script,
the ground floor hallway became the FBI's.
As soon as they got the word to set up, set decorating
scrambled into the CBC newsroom, changed some signage,
messed up some desks, disconnected a few computers,
and created the F6/ bullpen. After a few episodes of this
hysteria, theCBC newsroom became off-limits.
Eventually the bullpen was built onstage at the North
Shore Studios. An expanded version of JVlulder's office
was also built there.

23
X Marks the Spot

FOREST
SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION FOREST,
NORTH VANCOUVER
This forest is the mecca of filming in Vancouver: a

"The weather adds to the show. governed resource fruitful to the film industry. With exemp-
The quality of light adds to the
lary guidance, the Greater Vancouver Regional District

show. Vancouver is actually one of (GVRD) has sustained forest habitat while still providing a

the stars of the show." film backlot.

— Chris Carter, February 1998 February brings rain in Vancouver - as David Duchovny
well knows - so at the request of the GVRD we built plat-
forms at the base of the gully and provided wooden paths
with grips for equipment and actor accessibility. This prepa-
ration cost about $6,000 for supplies and another $3,000 to

provide a plywood base for a crane, which housed a bank of

xenon lights.

The most challenging aspect of the On the night of filming, the rains - clearly discernible by
new show? Its spelling. For those the cameras - descended. Within five minutes of call time,
first seasons, until the show caught everyone was drenched. The Vancouver crew was somewhat
on, was: "X as in 'x' and 'Files' as
it prepared for the deluge, but supervising producer Daniel
in 'filing cabinet.'" Sackheim had not yet become accustomed to Vancouver
weather. After an hour of setting up, Dan approached
production manager Lisa Richardson and myself and
demanded weather cover. At this point in the schedule, our
only option was a fast food restaurant that was so far away

t it

in
would have cost a day's
But Dan's persistence
one of the most
in
filming.
continuing the shoot culminated
visually exciting scenes of the Pilot, and
established rain as a valuable commodity to the show.

Chris wanted his sets and locations

to look as normal as possible. That
way, the juxtaposition between the
normalcy and a slight, even unno-
ticeable, aberration would create
tension. As the show continued, the
perception of reality changed. The
show became dark and mysterious
and its look transformed into the
vie\A/er's perception of "mysterious"
and "alien."

24
 PILOT
RURAL MOTEL
CEDAR LANE MOTEL,
926-160 ST., WHITE ROCK

Mulder and Scully's first motel stop. The script

demanded fire, wind, rain, darkness, and everything else
that can be thrown into a night shoot - which made With respect to location managing
securing a location somewhat difficult. and specifically, filming on loca-
Cedar Lane was the perfect motel - quaint and well- tion, there are always bound tobe
kept with a retro, nostalgic quality. Everyone loved the detractors; that is, individuals who
motel but the owners decided at the last minute to cancel. either hate the film industry or who
Incidents like these devastate a location manager. After 1
appear to tolerate us, so long as we
told Lisa of the problem, she looked at me sternly and "stay out of their backyard." Over the
said, "Offer them more money." It worked. years — and even on a popular series
Fire scenes always require standby municipal firefight- such as The X-Files — we've had our
ers and when possible, those firefighters and fire engines share of NIMBYs voice this exact
are included in the filming. 160th Street is the border be-
sentiment. We call it the viewer
hypocrisy argument for, in at least fifty
tween the cities of White Rock and Surrey and the Cedar
percent of these instances, opponents
Lane Motel is on the Surrey side of the street. Surrey fire
have to admit — when pressed — that
engines are green. White Rock fire engines are red. We
they do indeed watch television or go
wanted to use the red fire engines in the filming, but had
to movies at the cinema. And since
to have a green fire engine on standy in case of problems.
everything is shot somewhere, it
There wasn't enough space to park the camera truck.
follows that if we all espoused such an
it was a big night for special effects co-ordinator Dave
attitude, location filming would sooner
Gauthier, who arrived at Cedar Lane with a cube van filled
or later dry up and we'd have no
with noisy wind and lightning machines. Dave remained
with the show for the entire Vancouver run, but after
ti choice but to watch in-studio program-
ming, limiting the range of shows
Season Five, nobody could keep track of the vehicles and available, not to mention the entertain-
equipment associated with his department. ment value.
We returned to the Cedar Lane iVIotel to film J||k The film industry in British Columbia
"Demons" (4x23). 'SiS is worth a lot of money in direct trickle-
down revenue to a wide array of
businesses, from lumberyards to hotels

The truth is outta liere to restaurants and equipment rental

companies. Chances are that if you
don't benefit directly from revenue film
dollars, someone you know does.
Sometime those in the film communi-
ty can be the biggest problem. When
filming "Grotesque" (3x14), the wife of
a local producer complained to the
Vancouver film liaison that her free
parking had been taken up by film
trucks, after we had offered her alter-
native parking. Her free parking space
has since been metered.

¥s Official: X-Files creator Chris Carter's

luving Vancouver for LA., and taking agents
. ..f •!.« <.» 7tt

When Chris announced that the X-Files was leaving Vancouver, it was news.

25
X Marks the Spot

The X Babies FBI LOBBY/FBI LABORATORY

Not only did the cast and crew of The

B.C. HYDRO HEADQUARTERS,
333 DUNSMUIR ST., VANCOUVER
X-Files work long hours to produce a
great television series, but many also
The FBI lobby was first filmed here. During an active
found time to spawn great progeny.
work day, a crew and over fifty extras took control of the
lobby and two of the elevators. Scully's lab was created on
Piper Anderson (mother Gillian, Dana
the sixth floor of this building. On the day of filming,
Scully) Born: 2x07 "Three"
three other units were parked in close vicinity. One of the

Samuel Bobroff (father Michael, streets hadn't been signed which caused
for unit parking,

trainee assistant location manager) huge delays in getting trucks in. As usual, our Teamster
Borne: 4x24 "Gethsemane" captain. Ken Marsden, resolved the situation, and we
learned to always check street signage two days prior to
filming.
It was outside this location that assistant location

manager Rick Fearon and acknowledged the intrigue of

I

the show and our delight at working on a different and

refreshing television concept. We intuitively thought that
The X-Files had potential for success.

Baby on
location:

Francesca Pittson,
Christmas 1997.
t)
Dylan Buckmaster (father Richard,
gaffer)Conceived: 5x16 "Mind's Eye"

Amber Caughlan (father David, loca-

Conceived: 5x06 "Post
tion scout)
Modern Prometheus"

Leora Pearl-Dowler (father Brett, unit

manager) Born: 4x21 "Zero-Sum"

Nancy Joan Horsting (father Eric,

location production assistant)
Conceived: 4x1 1 "El Mundo Gira"

Quinlan and Conner Huff (father

Peter, special effects buyer) Born:
4x17 "Tempus Fugit"

Quinn Hunt (father Tom, lead carpen-

ter) Born: 2x21 "The Calusari"

Mulder's office; a permanent set built on a North Shore Studios

Edin Kane (father Brian, lead set
soundstage, just prior to being torched for "The End" (5x20).
dresser) Born: 5x08 "Kitsunegari"
26
 PILOT
EXTERIOR SCULLY'S APARTMENT
Olivia Kassis (father best boy)
610 JERVIS ST., VANCOUVER Bill,

Born: 1x21 "Born Again"

This location was Scully's apartment used both for the John Kassis (father Bill, best boy)
Pilot and "Squeeze" (1x02). The location was later Born: 3x03 "D.P.O"

dropped because the reverse angle showed a parking lot

Emily Kassis (father Bill, best boy)
and limited the number of shooting angles.
Conceived; 4x04 "Teliko"
Another apartment - on Pendrell Street, also in
Vancouver's West End - was selected. The interior of
Akcinya Kootchin (mother Lisanne,
Scully's apartment was a modified set built on a sound-
chef) Conceived: 5x17 "All Souls"
stage at the old Molson Brewery facility, which was
operated by Aaron Spelling's company. In Season One,
Tadeo Labra (father Alexis, location
when the show moved to North Shore Studios, Spelling
production assistant) Born: 5x05
wanted over $30,000 for Scully's and Mulder's apartment
"Christmas Carol"
sets. l.P Finn, production manager at the time, scoffed,
and after Spelling relocated, Finn was able to negotiate a
Sara Jessica Lieshout (father Peter,
new deal for a mere $4,000. lead painter) Born: 5x12 "Bad Blood"

Mackenzie Loewen (father Greg, art

director; mother Candace, Second Unit
hair stylist) Conceived: 4x06
"Sanguinarium"

Ethan Peverley (father Lance, location

production assistant) Born: 5x18
"The Pine Bluff Variant"

Sawyer Scout Pileggi (father Mitch,

Assistant Director Skinner) Conceived:
5x01 "Unusual Suspects"

Francesca Pittson (father Todd, loca-

tionmanager) Born: 4x07 "Musings of
a Cigarette Smoking Man"

Jack Sandor (mother Joanne Service,

assistant to Chris Carter) Conceived:
5x09 "Schizogeny"

Macrae Martin (mother Ainslie S.

Wiggs, assistant location manager)
Born: 5x20 "The End"

We suspect that six other babies were

born during the Canadian run of
7776 X-Files, but former crew member
parents were unavailable for confirma-
tion.

David (at left) takes his lunch at l^orth Shore Studios.

27
LI EVE
SEASON ONE: JULY 1993 - APRIL 1994

A.
For me, it began with a phone call from J. P. Finn, who had just been
hired to production manage a new television series called The X-Files.
It was early June I 993 and film production in Vancouver was already
heating up. Good crew would soon be difficult to find.
Asking J. P. what the show was about, he explained that
it had

"something do with FBI agents investigating unsolved cases."

to
"Great," replied, having no idea what was signing on for. "Probably
I I

keep us employed until Christmas," J. P. added. suspect that was the I

premise upon which much of the crew was hired. That "Christmas"
meant Christmas 1997 plus four months and 116 episodes occurred to
no one.
Likewise, names like Chris Carter, Gillian Anderson, and David
Duchovny meant nothing to any of us.
But Chris' optimism and passion for the show was infectious. It
showed in the eyes of that diverse group of individuals with whom a
five-year journey was about to begin. At the first production meeting,
Irecall doing a quick mental calculation based on the twelve locations
required for "Deep Throat" (1x01). Not every episode would be so
location-intensive, but even tossing a few hundred out, 1,000 locations
And that figure did not include
over five years seemed very plausible.
the demands of Second Unit which, by Season Three, had become an
integral component of the show.
Pondering these numbers, I questioned whether the Lower Mainland
could successfully double as so many different regions and states and
still retain a sense of newness. Were we destined to become a northern

version of Los Angeles, where every possible location had been shot to
death over the last forty years, to the point where most locations on
most shows were easily recognizable?
Five years is an eternity in the life of a dramatic television series, the
only guarantee being the unexpected. Most of us chose to concentrate
on the immediate demands of the show and let the future make itself.

And so it went, episode after episode, year after year. Location after
location.By the time "The End" (5x20) finally came in April 1998, we
maintained a respectable list of locations either under-utilized or
still

unused altogether by The X-Files. A list which we enigmatically

referred to as "Locations We Wished We'd Filmed."
In the end, it was time - and not locations - which ran out for
Vancouver and The X-Files.
X Marks the Spot
DEEP THROAT
Origins of a Myth
Test pilots at an air base in southwest Idaho disappear, and
The Season One opener, "Deep Throat," when they are located they go psychotic. White investigating,
was huge in every way, establishing the Mulder uncovers a top secret containing technology
facility
show's dynamic from day one. The fabled
recovered from crashed alien spaceships.
long days and longer nights for which
The X-Files quickly gained infamy began
here, although must be said that by the
It

middle of Season Two, a de facto Second ELLENS AIR BASE

Unit — operating under the B-Unit BOUNDARY BAY AIRPORT AND VICINITY,
moniker — had assumed enough of the DELTA
workload as to relegate at least a portion
of this hardship to crew mythology. Still, One of twelve locations called for in the first episode
the fable persisted, evidenced in the diffi- of The X-Files, this flat expansemixed farm-
of tarmac,

culty production sometimes had in finding land, and lonely country road became our own little Area

day-call crew, particularly if there was a 5! and a frequent favourite over the years. The airport

lot of other work In town. itself closes to all but emergency air traffic between

The location "Deep Throat"

list for 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., providing a very narrow "window"

speaks for Itself, and took us from down- within which to complete complicated scenes on the
town Vancouver to the furthest reaches of runway. With an average of five hundred take-offs and
the Lower Mainland: Budahas House, landings per day (more in summer months), this is a very
Zoe's House, Ellens Air Base, Perimeter busy little terminal indeed.
Fence (Air Base), Gateway Motor Lodge, Use of the grand old hangar is contingent upon the
Burger King, Athletic Field, Dunaway's co-operation of airport manager Ran Vared and the
Pub, Flying Saucer Diner, Hague House, several tenants occupying the building. They range from
McLellan House, Rural Road. private individuals hangaring planes to flight schools and
The Budahas House was about to re- t) machine shop operators.
ceive a when we arrived on the
facelift
This day perhaps set the tone for the large body of
scene. Director Dan Sackheim requested
show mythology which evolved over the years. It was
a "hold" be put on further renovations
a sunny Thursday afternoon in July as the crew assem-
until after filming was completed.
bled at the intersection of Airport Road and 80th Street
Ironically, this home would eventually
to film scenes at the Ellens Air Base checkpost, a structure
become a recurring location during the
created by the construction department.
first two seasons of another Carter/Fox
As day turned to night, we moved onto a runway apron
series called Millennium.
and adjacent field, where we continued filming through
In these early days of the show, it was
the night. From the perspective of production, the scene
not uncommon to receive a Sunday after-
noon call (we never officially worked became surreal as cast and crew scrambled to complete
the last "night" scene at 6 a.m. the following morning,
weekends) from executive producer Bob
Goodwin at his home in Washington just as the first rays of sunrise illuminated our hangar
State. Typically, he would offer his per- deep in the background. By then, everyone was stagger-

spective on a location concern or alert us ing to follow director of photography John Bartley's single

to potentially tricky location requests in utterance, "We'll shoot into the western sky . . . that'll

buy us a few minutes." Which may in turn have resulted

Director of photography: in director Daniel Sackheim's quip: "If suffering were an

responsible for directing the set-up, artform, I'd be Michelangelo."
operation, and movement of the An adjoining tract of overgrown land once housed mar-
camera; also directs the lighting ried officers' quarters during World War and doubled as
II

of the scene. Also called everything from a migrant Mexican farmworkers' shantytown
a cinematographer. in "El iVlundo Gira" (4x11) to an air disaster crash site in

"IVlax" (4x18) to the bombed-out home of a hacker genius

30
 SEASON ONE
in "Kill Switch" (5x11) to a highway intersection in

"D.P.O." (3x03). The attraction to this location was two- upcoming scripts. As the show achieved
fold. A network paved roads, the legacy of this site's
of its own rhythm we learned to read each
residential heritage, allows for complex night lighting other's minds, and such calls all but
set-ups using condors and cranes, as the grid design - ceased. By Season Three, a weekend call
separated by stands of deciduous trees and grassy from Goodwin meant that either someone
fields - makes for good accessibility for equipment. had died, the sky was about to fall, or he
Similarly, a half-mile stretch of "country road" - had a great dining suggestion for our next
complete with a four-way intersection - was ideal for Technical Survey lunch.
roadwork where total control was necessary. Centre This said, we — as location managers —

lineswere added or erased as per story requirements. were extremely fortunate over the five
years to have unrestricted access to the
site came complete with its own folklore.
This
writing staff in Los Angeles. Hence, rather
A large earthen cistern rising fifteen feet above the
than waiting for Day One of prep on a new
otherwise pancake-flat terrain once served as a water
episode, we were able to discuss in some
supply for the military residences located here.
detail upcoming location requirements
Neighbours warned us of "strange satanic rituals" being
days or weeks in advance of prep. This
performed atop the cistern late at night, a claim for
allowed us to sidestep potential problems
which no physical evidence was ever found. Nonetheless,
by either suggesting alternate locations or
the cistern was destroyed by a Transport Canada crew
clarifying theparameters within which a
not long after The X-Files first filmed here.
location might be used. This gave both
Chris and his staff the opportunity to write
to a specific location well in advance of
prep, thereby avoiding the messy scram-
ble entailed in adapting scenes or story-

D points to

The Zone
fit a location once prep had begun.

As in other film production centres, a

studio zone exists in the Lower
Mainland, bounded on the south by the
U.S. border, on the west by the Pacific
coastline, and ranging for twenty miles
north and east of Vancouver. This zone
differentiates "local" from "distant" in
terms of travel to locations, and was
designed to limit excessive travel to and
"If suffering were an art form, I'd be Michelangelo."
from locations on a daily basis.
- Dan Sackheim and a blue-painted figure from "Kitsunegari" (5x08).
Filming outside the studio zone can
result in a substantial increased cost to
production, as equipment truck drivers
FLYING SAUCER DINER
incur more hours in reaching distant
HILLTOP CAFE,
locations and the mileage costs (crew
23904 ERASER HWY.. LANGLEY
members are reimbursed a certain
American-Style roadside diners - especially those amount on a per kilometre basis for each
kilometre travelled outside the zone) for
frequented by UFO nuts - are as rare as a full day of sun-
a crew of fifty to one hundred people can
shine in December in Vancouver. Our establishment,
be significant. Hence this practice is
which has seen better days, sits on the side of the high-
avoided except where deemed absolute-
way next to a defunct motel. The selling points here were
ly necessary.
this location's rustic and isolated-looking appearance and

31
X Marks the Spot
the ability to pull a vehicle up out front. The faded
Additional Terms ctp) veneer, chrome, formica, and vinyl are reminiscent of the
drive-in theatre era.
One of the key points when negotiat-
This day began on a rural road in South Surrey with a
ing for the use of a location is to under-
stand fully your company's location
chase scene involving Mulder and Scully and some evil
contract, which both location manager
guys in black suits and government-issue sedans.
and client will be required to sign. Given the distance outside the studio zone (see The Zone),
Large institutions and corporations production hired a large tour bus to transport crew
such as universities, hospitals, and members That way, production would not
to this location.

airports will require you to sign their have to reimburse crew for mileage travelled outside the
agreement, a copy of which the loca- production zone in their personal vehicles, since alternate
tion manager must procur and forward transport had been provided, it also gave people the
to the company's legal representative opportunity to sleep for the duration of the half-hour
as early in prep as possible. ride.
In most cases, though, the company I recall being at the diner when the first crew cars
agreement will suffice, and while all arrived. One by one I counted heads, wondering who
contracts are not created equal, it is could possibly be on the bus, since virtually everyone had
the location manager's responsibility to arrived by car. When the bus finally pulled up in a cloud
be prepared to explain fully each article of dust, its door swung open and - with a dramatic
in that agreement. Some articles are flourish - the lone occupant, key grip Al Campbell,
self-explanatory, while others are so stepped out. He bowed to the assembled crew, who had
wrapped in legal jargon that a call to gathered to offer a round of applause. With the exception
the company's legal representative
of "Herrenvolk" (4x01), filmed in the Kamloops area, the
may be necessary for both clarification suggestion to bus crew members to distant locations was
and a layperson's interpretation.
never again entertained.
The focus of any location agreement
are the hold harmless clause, the liabil-
ity waiver, and the legal assurance that
t The decision
not without controversy.
to ferry cast
It
and crew to this location was
wasa time-consuming and
expensive move. Despite the vintage "look" of this place,
suitable insurance coverage is In place
we never returned here. When this episode aired, those
to protect both parties in the event of
most opposed to the choice of this location noted that the
mishap. Other clauses stipulate dates
and times
exterior shot was so tight that we could have shot a diner
and wrap
for prep, filming,
and, of course, the amount to be paid
in downtown Vancouver and made it work.
the client (Lessor) for his/her co-opera-
tion. A right of ownership clause identi-
fies the company (Licensee) as sole
owner of all filmed footage and record-
ed sound taken at a location, reserving
DUNAWAY'S PUB
the right to use this material in whatev- THE MEAT MARKET,
er way it wishes. 1 WEST CORDOVA ST. VANCOUVER

The script called for a wood-panelled, traditional tavern

which might serve as a watering hole for the Washington
In "Mind's Eye" (5x16), the Blarney
political insider crowd. There's a tangible difference
Stone, across the street from the
between American taverns and most Canadian pubs and
Meat Market, was used as a tav-
bars. Perhaps it's the colourful neon festooning those
ern. The writers liked the named of
long, well-stocked bars and the sense of accumulated
the pub and changed the script
accordingly. history etched into the worn wood wainscotting which
characterize American taverns and drinking holes and
lacking in most Canadian establishments.
In 986, Vancouver hosted a world's fair - Expo 86 -
I

32
 SEASON ONE
which set off a wave of ill-conceived renovations through
the majority of Vancouver's low- and mid-range hotels
and bars in an attempt to capitalize on the projected
tourist boom. The result was a transformation from "old
and well-travelled" (read character dowdy) into "generic For the most part, potential clients
tasteless tacky." do not question a well-written contract,
This location was literally the only one of its kind in the provided it has been adequately
Lower IVIainland. Well-travelled without being trendy, the explained to them. In special cases
combination of high windows, higher ceilings and a involving unusual risk (an explosion, a

unique arrangement of booths made it the hands-down high-fall from a building, the use of a
choice. marine vessel or aircraft, for example),
contracts may be modified to include
This location is where Assistant Director Skinner
specific location concerns as they
took a bullet in "Piper Maru" (3x15).
relate to the nature of these activities.
At the end of most location agree-
ments is a separate article entitled
Additional Terms, which these con-
in

cerns may or may not be addressed.

Having said this, requests by the client
to include a term are reviewed and
granted on an ad lioc basis, some-
SQUEEZE times with poetic twists.
One of several locations required for
Mulder and Scully pursue Eugene Tooms, an ancient but "Deep Throat" (1x01) was a motel to
youthful-looking killer who hibernates and awakens every play as the Gateway Motor Lodge in
thirty years to kill and feed on his victims' livers. southwest Idaho. As locations were
being "grouped" according to munici-
pality for scheduling and travel purpos-
CALVERT STREET es,we found ourselves down on 12th
1000-BLOCK WEST HASTINGS STREET, Avenue in Tsawwassen at the Beach
VANCOUVER Grove Motel towards the end of July
1993.
Tooms made his first appearance in Philadelphia The key elements offered by the
observing his victim through a drainage grate. This loca- Beach Grove were the actual lay-out
tion was chosen because of its urban look and the ease of of the motel: two storeys, an "L' config-
locking off the street for picture purposes. A City Hall uration with a parking lot separating
maintenance person thought we were crazy spending so the office building from the motel units,

much money to film red eyes through a drainage grate. and its stand-alone geography on the
Permission was granted to lock-up the street after 6 p.m. edge of a neighbourhood of low-slung
residences. With a golf course across
To avoid a lengthy night of filming we began the day in
the street, it exuded a small-town feel.
an office dressed by set dec on the fifth floor of a nearby
For filming purposes, access to a
building. Most active offices do not allow filming during
motel room, the motel office, and the
work hours. Set dec had to haul thirty desks and associ-
parking lot would be necessary. Given
ated dressing up to the fifth floor within two days. 1 have
the time of year, the motel was rea-
never been forgiven for that location.
sonably booking
quiet. In addition to
On the morning of our arrival not one member of my
Scully's room (Room 4) for a day on
crew showed up early to cone the streets for unit parking.
either side of our filming day for set
Luckily our location was situated next to a construction
site and with a bribe of coffee and doughnuts, a con-
struction worker guarded the street until assistance
arrived.

33
X Marks the Spot

66 EXETER STREET
REAR OF IDEAL GIFT AND TOY LTD.,
51-53 WEST HASTINGS ST., VANCOUVER
dec purposes, rooms on both sides of
Room 4 were booked for the day of
The exterior of Tooms' abode was situated In one of the
filming to ensure a degree of control
more undesirable areas of the city. Even though there was
over extraneous noise. One of these
an attempt to avoid filming on "Welfare Wednesday" (the
rooms would then be allocated to
last Wednesday of each month, when welfare recipients
sound mixer Michael Williamson's
receive their cheques), there was no alternative. The bars
sound cart, although his sound van
was actually parked on set and is were hopping and filming was repeatedly disrupted by
clearly visible in one scene as the outbursts of drunken behaviour. Relief was felt when the
Abramowitz Plumbing van. The other crew moved inside an abandoned boarding house above
room was used to store un\wanted the iVIeat Market restaurant in Gastown. That was the day
motel furnishings removed from Room i was formally introduced to David Duchovny.
4. Additional rooms were booked on
the day of filming for craft service/first
aid and a camera equipment stash
USHER'S UNDERGROUND PARKADE
since the camera truck was parked
some distance from set. VPC PARKADE,
The trickiest point of negotiation
107 EAST CORDOVA ST. VANCOUVER
involved a small capuccino bar housed
This location actually houses the original ventilation
in a converted unit close to the road.
system selected by director Harry Longstreet for the scene
Not only was it inappropriate for the
storyline (although a blessing for a
where Tooms attacks Usher. The system was situated in
crew fueled by caffeine) but it was the upper levels of the parkade and would have necessi-
directly in the line of fire and would, huge
tated a massive tenting job to simulate night at

therefore, have to be "dressed out" to t) expense. An exact duplicate was built and assembled in
the underground level of the parkade.
resemble — of all things — a motel unit.
This meant not only a separate negoti-
ation for loss of business but additional
work for both the construction and set CONDUIT
decorating departments, already over-
burdened on this episode. After a young girl is abducted by aliens during a family
The cafe operator was enthusiastic camping trip, Mulder and Scully find that her younger
although disappointed to learn that her brother may be communicating with the aliens through
business would not be featured on the binary sequences in television static.
show and would be shut down as well.
Still, we reached an agreement which I

felt worked very much in her favour. THE JERSEY DEVIL

On the day of filming, arrived on set
I

at about 6:30 a.m. to find my assistant Scully and Mulder travel to New jersey to investigate reports
and the locations crew busy preparing human remains. Evidence suggests that the
of cannibalized
for a 7 a.m. crew call. was standing in
I

legendary jersey Devil is a pre-human evolutionary being.

the office whenheard shouting from
I

the parking lot. turned to see, through

I

the gunrack in a truck's rear window, a

EXTERIOR VACANT BUILDING/RESTAURANT/PD PARKING LOT
man arguing with the caf6 operator.
Crew members drifted by on their way 900-BLOCK STATION ST., VANCOUVER

Chris was adament that the she-devil character appear

as if she were nude. Hair, makeup, and wardrobe went to

34
 SEASON ONE
work and a nudity suit was devised.
Tiie requirement for the urban component of the show
was an assembly of buildings where the she-devil could
to breakfast or the \A/ork trucks, but
leap from rooftop to rooftop and we proposed Station
Street. The owners of Atlantic Sheet Metals, who owned paid scant attention to the drama
unfolding. After several minutes of
most lawn chairs outside of their
of the block, positioned
heated mutual accusations, the woman
scrap metal shop during filming. Occasionally meet one!

leaned Into the cab of the truck, where

of the owner's in the grocery store and he always says,
she \A/as grabbed by the driver and
"Anytime you want to film at my place, let me know."
forced to sit. The vehicle then spun
During prep for this episode, director Joe Napolitano
around in a cloud of blue smoke and
complained about the lack of scouts - who search for
roared out of the motel lot and down
potential locations. After this we were allowed to hired
the road.
scouts.
From what we heard, it \A/as evident
We returned to Station Street to film the bad that we had witnessed a lovers' quarrel
neighbourhood scenes for "All Souls" (5x1 7). in which the boyfriend had arrived back
in town only to find a third party
involved. Ironically, the passion and
intensity of this off-camera melodrama
set the tone for Scully's on-camera
NEW JERSEY WOODS
exchange in the parking lot with
SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION FOREST, Mossinger later in the day.
NORTH VANCOUVER Returning to the premise of this story
and most amusing of all was the addi-
There are not many accessible caves in the Lower
tional clause requested by the owner of
Mainland and the best option for filming is Twin Bridges the motel prior to signing the location
at the Seymour Demonstration Forest, even though five- contract. It read — and I quote verbatim
tonne trucks are the only vehicles that can negotiate the — "the Company acknowledges that the
road, creating a five kilometre run between the circus and subject matter of this episode does not
set. The nudity issue was also a delicate matter given contain material which may be con-
that this location is open to the public. The she-devil was strued as damaging to the reputation
allowed to venture about topless with her hair shielding of the motel." In other words, no on-
her breasts. The rest of her was clothed. camera hanky-panky, please. Evid-
ently, this did not apply to motel staff.

A final moment of irony arose a cou-

INTERIOR TOWNHOUSE/RESTAURANT/ROB'S OFFICE ple of hours after this exchange
1451 ANGUS DR., VANCOUVER occurred. Fox's vice-president of pro-
duction Charlie Goldstein paid a visit to
set. His initial comment was something
All three of these locations were scheduled for one day like, "Nice location, how's it going?"

of shooting. Luckily, we foundmansion diverse enough

a Given the day's events so far, coun- I

to make this grouping possible. The dining room was tered with, "Not bad, but if I'm forced to

converted into a restaurant where Scully would meet a write these guys one more cheque you
love interest. The den made a fine office and the kitchen may as Fox
well consider this place

worked as a kitchen. The only problem was municipal real estate." To which Charlie merely

time constraints - the curfew between II p.m. and 7 a.m. looked around, smiled, and — shrug-
ging his shoulders — made a beeline
At 10:30 p.m. wrap was called and it was obvious that
for the camera.
the set could not be struck by 11:00 p.m. Everyone
walked away from set, and the following day wrap was
completed. The producers' sensitivity to municipal
requirements set a precedent in local filming: don't push
the envelope, we're here for awhile. Throughout the entire

35
X Marks the Spot
duration of the show in Vancouver, the producers
respected municipal film ordinances, although sometimes
Naked reluctantly. When Chris was working on the Millennium
pilot he personally paid for reshoots on the Burrard Street
Location managers and first assistant
directors must work closely together,
Bridge, but felt guilty closing down a portion of the bridge
for a second time, him not to worry because the
i told
especially during the scheduling of
\work to be filmed on location. This
end result would be good product for the industry in
ensures that a proper understanding Vancouver.
exists with regard to what is being We returned here to film exterior scenes for "Fire"
*"'

filmed when and how, and allows for (Ixll). It doubled as an English country estate.
planned adjustments to be made to the
shooting schedule where potential
problems could arise with regard to
special effects, stunts, and neighbour-
hood restrictions. SHADOWS
Producer J. P. Finn recalled an inci-

dent during the filming of "Shadows" A secretary's murdered boss -from beyond the grave - protects
(1x05) in which a lapse occurred: her from danger and uses her to expose the murderer.

We were at this house in East

Vancouver, Lauren's house, believe It I

GHOST IN THE MACHINE

was. Production had been using my car
todouble the stunt vehicle for the day A "smart" building's computer system develops a survival
work and we must have fallen behind instinct.
schedule, because remember that at
I

around 10:30 p.m. — as the 1 1 p.m.

curfew drew near — there was a heated
discussion bet\A/een myself, the location
t) EURISKO BUILDING
manager, and the first assistant director
METROTOWER COMPLEX,
regarding a scene we were about to
COMPLEX 4720 KINGSWAY. BURNABY
II,

shoot which involved lightning and wind

machines. Ritters, the noisy ones. The requirement for this location was an office tower
Todd was adamant that the scene be lobby during the day. Metrotowers agreed, without know-
scrapped, as would certainly have
it
ing the implications or the impact we would have. Our day
taken us past the curfew and, with all began on the plaza outside the towers. Filming was taking
that noise, he did not want to assume longer than anticipated so by the time we started filming
responsibility for the fall-out. First assis- inside the lobby was around 6 p.m. and most of the
it

tant director Brian Giddens pointed out building had been vacated. was struck with relief when
1 I

that the day's work had always been saw the set-up in the lobby. It would have been impossible
scheduled in this order and that
if not for anything else to happen in the lobby. Extras were posi-
for problems with the stunt earlier in the tioned behind the security counter while lighting equip-
day we would have been home by now. ment consumed the space. The elevator was being pre-
In any case, it was my responsibility rigged with lights and carts of equipment lined the elevator
to ensure that we made our day, one corridor. There was barely enough room for the actors.
way or the other. Back in those days went outside and filmed
Later that evening, the crew
there was no Second Unit to pick up
"The Ghost in the Machine," sending a surge of power
the pieces.The show was in its infancy through each floor of the highrise. The Tower's engineer
and money was tight. Everything had to
programmed, by cellular phone, the sequential lighting of
be shot as per schedule.
each floor.

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS)

occupied one of the floors of this building.

36
 SEASON ONE
ICE

A group of scientists in Alaska unearth - and become infected

by - a worm-like parasite. At about 1 1 :50 p.m. we finished
blocking and lighting the shot and the
DOOLITTLE AIR FIELD Ritter fans were turned on. The racket
D E LTA AIR PARK, was considerable, and Todd stormed
4187 - 104 ST., DELTA off set. We rolled camera and cut,
preparing for another take. All of a sud-
"Ice" was probably the least location-intensive episode den this guy appeared on his porch
of my With the decision to
five-year stint on the show. across the street. He was screaming
build the interior of the Icy Cape Research Compound on obscenities at the crew, telling us to go
one of our soundstages at the old Molson Brewery site, home, that we had no right to be there.
only one location remained on the list. But here's the kicker: he was stark
The primary concern with this location was back- naked. He just stood there, in front of
ground, as Doolittle Air Field was set in Nome, Alaska, an the whole shooting crew — men and
icier locale than Vancouver. Shooting the principal dia- women — letting it all hang out. We

logue scenes inside a hangar looking out limited the must have got him out of bed or some-
exposure to "southern geography," but a flat, treeless thing. Who knows.
landscape would certainly help to sell the location. For Anyway, we ignored him and contin-
this reason, we chose the Delta Air Park with its grass ued filming. was determined to get
I

runways and collection of low-slung hangars. It was the day and get us out of there as
quickly as possible. He blustered on for
about as close Canada-U.S. border as we could
to the
another minute or so, then gave up. We
get, which meant a predominantly flat, empty horizon
when limited to camera angles from inside the hangar wrapped around 12:30 a.m. It was one
at
of the most ridiculous on-location
Nahanni Helicopters.
moments can recall during my five
It was September 29, 993 and a clear, sunny day as
1
t) I

years on Th6 X-Files.

cast assembled in down-filled winterwear and pretended
to look cold, although no telltale hint of breath was visi- As a postscript to Finn's commen-
ble anywhere. What an irony this would prove to be tary, should be noted that the follo\A/-
it

when, almost four years later during the filming of ing morning a written letter of apology
"Gethsemane" (4x24), cast and crew assembled inside an was hand-delivered to each resident in

elaborate ice cave set built in a refrigerated building, the that block, along with notification that
temperature on the wall reading -20 degrees Fahrenheit The X-Files was donating $50Q to their
and pretended not to look cold. Neighbourhood Blockwatch program.
This episode marked production designer Graeme When we did transgress an under-
standing or agreement — which was
debut on The X-Files, his excellent set
IVIurray's
foreshadowing even greater things to come.
infrequent considering the amount of
location filming we did over five years —
the company took these issues seri-
ously and sought to make amends in
the most socially responsible way
possible.
Incidentally, the following morning,
the gentleman phoned the production
office to apologize for his outburst, and
we in turn apologized to him.

"I could have sworn I parked here." At North Shore Studios' parking lot.

37
X Marks the Spot

SPACE
A former astronaut is haunted by memories of a spacewalk,
and the space shuttle project he is in charge of is sabotaged
by an unknown force.

J.S.C.SIMULATOR SHIP CORRIDOR AND HANGAR

CANADIAN AIRLINES OPERATIONS CENTRE,
6001 GRAND McCONACHIE WAY, RICHMOND

Screening Room "Space" is one of my was visually

favourites; the story

During the first season, Fridays challenging, and having Graeme Murray on board helped
meant iate-nigfit shooting because to turn our ideas into reality.

The X-Files aired at 9 p.m. and David The locations pertinent to this show led us directly to
requested a one-hour lunch to corre- the airline companies. The Canadian Airlines Operations
spond with air time. Lunch hour occurs Centre granted us permission to film during their work
six hours after call time, after which day. We required use of the hangar and flight simulator
filming resumes for another six hours. facility. The simulator's operations manager asked if any
Using simple mathematics, the crew of the crew would be interested in flying the mock 737s
determined that wrap hour on Friday and 747s. thought he was joking.
1

nights would be 2 a.m. at the earliest. On the film day, we ordered four mobile carts to move
Fridays were not a favourite night for equipment throughout the hangar area. A fifth was
the crew. allocated to me as a comp. arrived on the 4th floor to
I

While shooting "Ghost in the collect the comp, drove into an elevator, and was trans-
Machine" (1x06) one Friday, we began
ported down to set. Once filming resumed, my cart led
the day filming in Burnaby's Central
Park, then moved to film inside the
Burnaby Public Library parkade, to be
t me to the simulator. The generator operator, Bill Dawson,
was finished his cabling and told him to come join me.
He piloted a trip into Vancouver and co-piloted a trip
1

followed by interior scenes inside the

out of Hong Kong. During these trips, numerous mes-
Library administration area. The
sages were left on my cell phone to determine my (and
parkade, essentially vacant at the time,
the cart's) whereabouts. Word about the simulator got
provided a perfect venue for "air time" at
out and before long most of the crew was at the simula-
9 p.m., but was abandoned in favour of
tor station, forming a lineup. Almost everyone piloted a
the exterior sidewall</plaza of the
Library where about forty chairs were voyage. Finally, director Graham sought out his
Billy

placed in front of a forty-inch television.

opportunity, but production was due to move to another
Traffic slowed at the sight of forty peo- location. The crew was forced to wait for Billy at the new
ple watching television outside a library. location as he had his turn. Approximately one hour of

First assistant director and Lone production time was lost due to "trips abroad," and
Gunman Tom Braidwood said it was the producer J. P. Finn crashed his "plane" in Calgary.
most bizarre experience of his film
career.
J.S.C. MISSION CONTROL
ROBSON SQUARE CONFERENCE CENTRE,
600ROBSON ST.. VANCOUVER
One of the most difficult tasks on this episode was to

find a mission control station. Many locations were pre-

sented but none looked like NASA. With a search in
progress it was deemed that a space with a sloped
floor could provide the basis for rows of "prefab"
computer terminals. For this we chose a hidden,

38
 SEASON ONE
infrequently used ampitheatre inRobson Square Media
Centre. Construction ordered over fifty computer termi- Hospital Site
nals prefabricated with plastic and useful for a one-time
In July 1993, the University Hospital
situation only.
(Shaughnessy Site) began closing wards
and offices in preparation for a transfer of
ownership to the Children's and Women's
Health Centre of British Columbia, a
PASADENA BEDROOM
1973
process which was completed by Nov-
ROOM 1256, SUTTON PLACE HOTEL. ember of that same year. The change of
VANCOUVER ownership proved fortuitous for the B.C.
film industry in general, as the site offered
A "reflective" scene u/ith an encounter from Mars took
a vacant emergency ward, two vacant
place at the Sutton Place Hotel, in the room that director
fourth floor wards, a vacant sixth floor
Billy Graham was staying in. Billy quite liked the idea that
ward and ICU, an empty building (the
he could walk to work, and at wrap merely take three
Jean Matheson Pavillion), and the Old
steps to slumberland. For locations, the hotel was a new Stores Building, a wooden structure which
venue, as filming is seldom allowed at "Le Grand sat alone in a parking lot.
Residence." After a pitch about the lucrative benefits of The site also offered ample parking for
the film industry, permission was granted. Every resi- crew and worktrucks alike and, with some
dence was petitioned, and every precaution was taken to restrictions, allowed late-night filming.
ensure minimal disruption to the neighbouring tenants. Under the guiding hand of film liaison
While shooting at Sutton Place, the Wall Centre, a hotel co-ordinator Barbara Faerge, the
and office complex then under construction, allowed us Children's Hospital, as we called it,

to drop a camera from a construction crane to simulate a became a regular location for The X-Files.
fall. At the end of the evening The Gerard Lounge - the Beginning with "Fallen Angel" (1x09) and
bar at Sutton Place - provided welcome nightcaps.

FALLEN ANGEL
^ culminating with "The Red and the Black"
(5x14), we shot scenes for no less than
twelve separate episodes on this site.

As a point of interest, the Old Stores

— most memorable perhaps as
Building
On a tip from Deep Throat, Scully and Mulder visit a UFO Lee Harvey Oswald's boarding house and
crash site, and get caught up in the military's hunt for the the rat-infested decaying loft irom which
invisible alien pilot. the Cigarette Smoking Man contemplates
the assassination of Lone Gunman
WASHINGTON PARK/PLAZA Frohike in "Musings of a Cigarette
Smoking Man" (4x07) — was demolished
SIMON ERASER UNIVERSITY,
in March 1999. Executive producer Bob
BURNABY
Goodwin purchased timbers from the site
touse in building a barn at his
Throughout the course of the show, we worked in

almost every
Washington State property.
office building and public space in the city.

Certain architectural styles do not exist in "newer" west

coast cities such as Vancouver. Others are simply few and
far between, among them the kind of monolithic com-
plexes housing the real powerbrokers in the Canadian
government. What was desired here was a large empty
plaza surrounded by buildings evocative of the FBI head-
quarters in Washington, D.C.

Simon Fraser University, designed by well-known local

architect Arthur Erickson, provided us with this rather
unique location - complete with fountains and ponds -
perched high on Burnaby Mountain. The logistics of lunch break at B.C. Children's Hospital.

39
 X Marks the Spot
bringing a large film crew to an institution such as this
were rivalled only by the bureaucratic process involved in

obtaining permission to film on campus during the

semester. Parking is restrictive enough for many
students, since there is little room for expansion on top of
Also on Burnaby Mountain is the a mountain, it became a real military exercise when park-
BC Hydro system control centre ing generators, worktrucks, and trailers near access points
which played as the microwave sta- to locations while ensuring that crew members did not
tion in "Fallen Angel" (1x09). become lost between circus parking and location in the
throng of student activity and the vast maze of
concrete "ambiguity." Which made Deep Throat's utter-
ance "Keep your friends close, your enemies closer" all

the more prophetic.

The flying saucer crash site was

EVE
filmed in theSeymour Demonstra-
tion Forest's gravel pit. "With all that
The daughters of two unrelated men - killed in the same
foam and fire," recalled art director
manner - appear to be identical twins. Scully and Mulder
Gary Allen, "it was a wonderful set.
discover that the girls are part of an abandoned cloning
We [the art department] cut our
project subverted by one of the original clones.
chops on that show."

LIGHTHOUSE MOTEL/DINER
SEACREST MOTEL, 864 STAYTE AVE. AND
WHITE ROCK SUNSET CAFE,' 15782 MARINE DR., WHITE ROCK

t) The most difficult location was the "typical" roadside

diner with semi-trailers parked outside in the parking lot.

Around the Lower Mainland, anyone who owns such

prime property near an urban centre certainly would not
Tenting job: refers to the practice of devote it to non-profitable parking.

removing a daylight source from a After a lengthy search for a diner, I recalled the Old Mill

set, a task performed by grips restaurant White Rock and the cafe at the rear. The
in

using black duvetyne material. cafe opened onto a large gravel lot and appeared very
rural in its setting.
With great enthusiasm, Graeme designed an awning to
complement the exterior. Over ten semis filled the parking
Condors: a crane used for elevating
lot for a evening of non-stop filming. Many of the drivers
I

I lights 60 to 100 feet. were a bit disgruntled by the 4 a.m. wrap time.

FIRE
When filming the flying saucer
crash for "Fallen Angel" (1x09) When an "old flame" of Mulder's asks for help in protecting a

at the Seymour Demonstration British diplomat from a kinetic maniac, Mulder has to confront

Forest, co-executive producer his fear of fire.

Bob Goodwin was caught speed-

ing, and narrowly escaped a VENABLE PLAZA HOTEL
permanent ban from the forest. HOTEL VANCOUVER,
No-one was above the law. 900WEST GEORGIA ST. VANCOUVER

40
 SEASON ONE
Anyone got a light? This hotel was originally built in
1887 at the corner of Georgia and Granville Streets and
consisted of four storeys. It burned down and was rebuilt
in 1916 at 710 West Georgia Street. The present structure
was constructed at 900 West Georgia Street between
1928 and 1939, taking eleven years to complete. Ironic
that our pyrokinetic villain should choose this venue?
Actually, the fire which engulfed a room and hallway was
filmed on a set built to match the architecture of this
hotel. The establishing shot of the hotel was taken from
stock footage, whereas the drive-up involved our practical
location.
We had initially planned to film the party in a sumptu-
ous ballroom, but due to booking problems, decided to
move those scenes into the mezzanine and adjoining The 14th floor of the Venable Plaza
hallway. During renovations to the main lobby in 1995- Hotelis devoted to the lavish and

96, the drop ceiling was removed to reveal the original Old World decadent, the various
ornately crafted beam ceiling. Another one-of-a-kind suites bearing the names of
English royalty. Assistant Director
Vancouver heritage site.
Skinner spent the night in a suite
on this floor in "Avatar" (3x21).

BEYOND THE SEA

Mulder and Scully switch
and Mulder
that a death
roles as Scully becomes the
the skeptic. After her father dies, Scully believes
row inmate - who claims to
believer

have psychic powers

V
and has offered to help solve a series of couple murders - is
able to channel her father's spirit.

OCEANSIDE/BOATHOUSE
GARRY POINT PARK, CHATHAM RD. AND BRITANNIA
HERITAGE SHIPYARD, 12451 WESTWATER DR., STEVESTON

On a cold and windy day Scully bids farewell to her

father as his ashes are carried out to sea. When filming
this scene Gillian stood on the shore of this sandy beach
point location. The wind was ruthless, in fact, so much
that executive producer Bob Goodwin requested a special
warming tent be placed near the set to shelter his wife A UFO glinting in the sunshine.
Sheila Larkin, who plays Scully's mother, it helps to know
someone in the business.
Later the company moved to Britannia Heritage
Shipyard resume filming in the blustery cold. Propane
to
heaters were not allowed in the shipyard because of the
timber structures and heritage nature of the site. The
crew huddled around an old wood-burning stove in a tiny
room, telling stories and drinking lots of hot chocolate.
The on-site liaison kept the fire ablaze the entire time.

41
X Marks the Spot

GENDERBENDER
A rogue member of The Kindred, a reclusive religious sect who
can switch gender, is killing city folk using sex as the murder
weapon.

THE BRETHREN COMMUNE

Electrics: crew members responsi-
ROWLATT HISTORIC FARM,
ble for placing lighting equipment. CAMPBELL VALLEY PARK, LANGLEY
When the word Amish comes up in conversation, we
usually think of barn-raisings and white clapboard build-
ings, or Harrison Ford and Kelly McGillis - in Witness -
dressed in somber black and white astride a buckboard

Grips: crew members responsible somewhere in Pennsylvania. The fictional Brethren of this
forshaping ligfit and making story needed a turn-of-the-century communal farm to
shadows. call home. And while the Lower Mainland does boast its

share of old farmhouses and barns - from the dilapidated

to the fully restored - all but a couple of these stand
alone and hence were not suited to the communal look
demanded by the story.
Unfortunately, several days of torrential rain wreaked
havoc with production. During the winter months, the
water table area is perilously high. This meant
in this
t> that even theplywood boardwalks we built to keep the
crew dry sank into a muddy ooze, making the grips and
electrics especially miserable. Due to the historic nature of
our location (circa 1893), we were prevented from alter-
Above-the-line: refers to the cre-
ing the appearance of either the clapboard farmhouse
ative elements (script development,
(production designer Graeme Murray asked to have it
producers, directors, cast) of the
painted white) or the weathered outbuildings for filming
show.
purposes. Interiors were built on our soundstages.

LITHIAGENERAL STORE & FEEDSTORE

MARINE GROCERY.
Below-the-line: refers to the
3680 MONCTON ST., STEVESTON
technical elements of production.

Picture the Brethren on a buckboard urging their horses

through a small rural community bustling with activity
and you have a pretty accurate vision of what writers
Larry and Paul Barber had in mind for Lithia. New England
townships and picturesque rural communities are difficult
if not impossible to duplicate in this part of the country -
let alone in close proximity to Vancouver - since the set-
tlement of the west coast was unique and relatively recent
when compared with the histories of central Canada and
the eastern United States. Which is why we ended up
42
 SEASON ONE
here, a seaside community south of Vancouver doubling
for a rural township in Massachusetts.
Urban sprawl and a mounting exodus from the city of
the early days at the Molson
Vancouver to outlying communities with affordable real InBrewery offices, the show employed
estate and a quieter pace have altered economic preroga-
two location managers, two assistant
tives in those communities. Sadly, the result is - more
location managers, and production
often than not - either uninspired restoration projects or
assistants as required. Typically, when
outright demolition of original architecture.
filming on our stages, three production
Near-disaster struck when the old buckboard rented for
assistants were required for sound and
this scene pulled around a corner and into the main
traffic lock-ups. When on location, the
which time - and as
street in front of the general store, at
number of production assistants varied,
ifon cue - a rear wheel fell off, injuring one of our but there were always at least five.
wranglers, who broke his nose after being thrown into As the show grew in size and complex-
the street. ity, a Second Unit assistant location

The X-Files also visited this town when filming manager was hired and two full-time
"IVIiracle iVlan" (1x17). location scouts \A/ere added. By Season
Four, we were usually shooting or
prepping three episodes simultaneous-
ly;that is, scouting locations for an
upcoming episode, managing the
episode currently being shot, and "pick-
LAZARUS ing up" whatever was left of the previ-
ous episode(s).
While dying on the operating table, the body of FBI agent
This situation often created schedul-
lack Willis, an old boyfriend of Scully's, is inhabited by the
ing nightmares and put huge demands
consciousness of the bank robber he has been relentlessly
pursuing. X) on
in
all departments to keep three balls
the air all at once. Last-minute deci-
sions based on weather (did matchit

BANK with the scene half-shot three weeks

earlier in the Seymour Watershed?)
BANK OF MONTREAL.
and the logistics of transporting David
500-520 GRANVILLE ST. VANCOUVER
and Gillian from a Main Unit location to
This episode was filmed just before Christmas. It took a Second Unit location and back again
up an hour to lay cable along the sidewalk leading to
to
— sometimes taking two or three hours
— necessitated that the location depart-
the bank due to the maze of pedestrian traffic. At the
bank, sec dec had to remove all of the Christmas decora-
ment be ready at all times to accom-
modate production. On studio days —
tions minutes before filming and then return the items
and oh, how we prayed for those rare
immediately afterwards. The bank robbery scene was
"studio shots" — there was obviously
alarming - the physical action and Lazarus' aggressive
more time available. But on big days, in
shrill made some people think an actual robbery was tak-
sensitive locations or on downtown
ing place.
streets where police officers and a
This was the first episode that did not have Gillian and
dozen production assistants were
David in each scene, which meant they got an extra day
needed just to manage traffic, it
off. Gillian and David approved, and there was an above- became very difficult to watch over the
the-line request to create more shows that would give the Main Unit while organizing or oversee-
stars a few extra, and well-deserved, days off. ing simultaneous prep and Second
Unit.

43
X Marks the Spot

We are proud to have developed a BASEMENT

competent and loyal crew over the ORANGE HALL, 341 GORE AVE.
years, but this did not come without VANCOUVER
growing pains. Early in Season One,
two production assistants (a man and a Orange Hall is an apartment building in the Chinatown
woman) had a physical altercation in a area of Vancouver, the majority of whose tenants are
stairwell at the brewery. Without getting Asian. A composed a letter informing the ten-
translator
too specific, the woman felt somehow ants of our activity and then spent the day with us on
justified in taking a swing at the man location. We first filmed in the alley, then moved inside to
(there were witnesses among the crew) the basement. It became evident that we required an
in retaliation for what she perceived to additional police officer for the alley work. We put in a
be a physical threat. Two production request to Constable Bob Young, special events co-ordi-
assistants in a fist-fight on set? After
nator with the Vancouver Police, and he said he would be
deliberating briefly, Louisa and decid- I

on-site in a few minutes or however long it would take to

ed that the only recourse was to relieve
walk twenty feet, since the police station was at the end
them of their duties. It was a horrible
of the alley. Now that's service.
experience with both parties partially at
Filming in the basement proved unpopular. The grips
fault, but the argument was far from
complained about the asbestos-insulated pipes, the
being black and white. Thankfully, such
electrics were angry because they couldn't clamp lights to
incidents were never repeated and we,
the pipes, and everyone griped about the oppressive size
as location managers, learned a valu-
of the space.
able lesson with regard to crew com-
patibilityand labour management. By
Season Five our department numbered YOUNG AT HEART
upwards of
fifteen from time to time — each with A bank robber caught by Mulder escapes prison, hooks up with
specific, although overlapping, duties —
and is to the credit of the assistant
it
t) a scientist who has found a way to reverse the aging process,
and seeks revenge.
location managers that, under adverse
circumstances, they managed to pre-
E.B.E.
vent production assistants from killing

each other.
Scully and Mulder track a truck transporting an alien
salvaged from UFO wreckage in northern Iraq to a secret
government facility in Washington state.

"E.B.E." stands for extraterrestrial

biological entity. POWERTECH
EXTERIOR-TRIUMF, 4004 WESBROOK MALL,UBC AND
INTERIOR-POWERTECH, 1 2388-88 AVE., SURREY

Chris always encouraged us to send photos of interest-

ing locations to the L. A. -based writers, Glen Morgan and
James Wong. We sent them a file of the interior of BC
Hydro's Powertech, and they agreed the site was a win-
ner. The lab where the alien meets his final demise is, in

reality, a functional research facility designed for testing

different types of electrical current effects, it almost looks
like Frankenstein's lab although more colourful. When
director of photography John Bartley arrived on location,
Director of photography ]oei Ransom (left) and
he was overwhelmed by the massive size of the facility
director Bob Goodwin, executive producer and
and even more overwhelmed when he realized the num-
director of "The End" (5x20).
ber of lights that would be required.
44
 SEASON ONE
MIRACLE MAN

Mysterious deaths surround a teenage faith healer and his Hot list: When use of a particular
father's evangelical crusade. location is felt tobe heavy, or a
major complaint is unresolved, city
or municipal film officials place the
REVEREND HARTLEY'S HOUSE location on a "hot list" for a pre-
24990 RIVER RD. determined length of time, and no
FORT LANGLEY productions are permitted to film
there. We call it "giving the location
The needed to be at least as big as
reverend's estate a rest."
his reputation; large enough, in any case, to park his
fleet of Cadillacs in the circular driveway. Set in Tennes-

see, something approaching a grand Southern look was Crime Story ctp)
sought.
The truth is indeed stranger than
Given the nature of our night work at this location -
fiction. The teaser ior "Young at Heart"
a big night-lighting setup, lightning, and wind machines - (1x15) required a high-end jewellery
1 felt our best chance was to stay away from established store in which to stage the aftermath of a
neighbourhoods. The obvious choices, such as robbery, always a sensitive issue with
Shaughnessy or South Vancouver, were, at the time, on a security-oriented businesses such as
hot list which precluded night filming. We therefore found
this. In the spirit of "starting big," I made
ourselves in the Langley area, well outside the city, where an initial inquiry to Henry Birks & Sons —
a number of large estates offered us more flexibility. The Vancouver's largest and most prestigious
distance factor - which proved considerable - was part of jewellery store — and was both surprised
the trade-off. and excited to learn that our request for
The home we chose was an was being considered.
interesting one. Situated
high on a bluff facing northeast toward the Fraser River, it
30 filming
Several days passed, during which
was self-contained and provided the necessary exterior time conditions and concerns were
visual elements. The previous owner had designed his discussed as a precursor to reaching an
home around a large indoor swimming pool, which could agreement. Most important among these
best be viewed from a horseshoe-shaped mezzanine bal- was a request that security measures be
cony off which the bedrooms were located. The main put in place to ensure that the presence
floor consisted of a spacious foyer, a kitchen, a den, and of a large film crew in a jewellery store

a study, with the pool as the unifying element. would not lead to a real robbery attempt.
When owner decided to sell the home, the
the previous I had to admit that both our presence
listing agent convinced him that it would be far easier to
and the nature of our activity could,
theoretically, provide an excellent cover.
market the house without the pool, which was subse-
Such a concern was all the more real for
quently filled. This created a huge central living room
store management and staff following a
which never quite felt like it belonged, but was great for a
robbery attempt in the store six weeks
film crew.
earlier, in which three men wearing bala-
On the day of filming, I arrived early in the morning to
clavas and brandishing sawed-off shot-
find the property unexpectedly blanketed in snow. The
guns entered the store just prior to clos-
locations, special effects, and greens crews got to work
ing for the day and made off with what
steaming and raking and sweeping snow off the large
front lawn, since the first shot was to be a wide establisher
of the house with the reverend's Cadillac collection lined
Teaser: The introduction to an
up in the driveway. Steaming, which was the quick solu-
episode, an opening scene that
tion, only turned the lawn into mud and had to be aban-
sets the premise of the story.
doned in favour of the more laborious process.
Greensman Frank Haddad was quick to point out that,
while there had been no report of snow anywhere in the
45
X Marks the Spot
Lower Mainland the previous evening, the bluff on which
we now stood was a good 200 feet above sea level, which
would explain the strange appearance of snow at our
location.
they could, fleeing through the mall
and down a street crowded with
Christmas shoppers. They were even- SHAPES
tually apprehended, but not before
scaring the daylights out of both staff Scully and Mulder venture to northern Montana to confront a
and customers. And here was, I
legendary North American wolf-like creature.
proposing a recreation of the aftermath
of just such a robbery for an episode
of The X-Files. The general manager RESERVATION
must have thought we were crazy. BORDERTOWN,
The scene opens with Mulder and 224THST., MAPLE RIDGE
Scully exiting a car (with the edifice of
the "Hudsons Bay Company" — a For this episode we travelled to this municipality outside
Canadian department store — clearly the studio zone. The extra costs made some people
visible in the background) and walking grumpy, at least until the result was successfully televised.
towards the front entrance of the store, The script requirements for a Native reservation included
ducking a ribbon of crime scene tape interiors for a police office, morgue, bar/poolhall plus the
as they enter. Fake police cruisers — exterior of Ish's house and reservation/town. Bordertown
lights blazing — were parked on the (a classic western "town" in Maple Ridge that was built
plaza as background ambience. Next to specifically for filming), somewhat weathered over time
them, however, were real Vancouver and missing a few buildings that were consumed by fire,
Police Department officers, who offered an interesting cloister of buildings and rustic inte-
monitored the small crowd which had
loads of gravel were dumped onto
gathered to watch. Store security tl riors. Prior to filming,

the muddy streets to ensure ease of vehicle, equipment,

guards controlled the back and lower
and people access. It started to rain two days before film-
exits to the store, while each crew
ing and by the time we arrived on location, the gravel had
member wore special identification.
been absorbed into the mud. The entire crew wore boots;
The fact that our story involved a
equipment kept getting stuck in the mud, and vehicles
crime scene and not the staging of a
couldn't move. It was like filming a scene in a mud bath.
crime was very important to both the
The only happy person was first assistant director and
police and Birks management, as we
had agreed that no weapons would be Lone Gunman Tom Braidwood, because he lived within a

brandished by actors. (On more than ten-minute drive of Bordertown.

one other production, actors have
nearly been killed because the safety
precautions regulating the use of DARKNESS FALLS
props, weapons, and firearms had
been side-stepped or ignored.) Filming Prehistoric bugs that have been hiding out in the trunks of
was non-business hours to
restricted to ancient trees in a remote forest are released by loggers and
avoid disruption of business and to swarm their victims when night falls.
ensure that the most valuable jewellery
was removed from the display cases
and locked safely away for the night.
LOGGING CAMP/CABIN
The evening proved thankfully unevent- LIGHTHOUSE PARK,
ful for all parties. WEST VANCOUVER
The rains pelted us in horizontal sheets here in the
Olympic National Forest for eight days and eight nights,
punctuated by only one afternoon of intermittent sun-

46
 SEASON ONE
shine. Locating a believable work camp in an accessible
old-growth forest was as difficult as it was easy to find
The Silent Scream ctp)

clearcutting in this part of British Columbia. We ended up Discord and differences of opinion were
In this breathtaking park near the ocean, in an old camp as common in the production of The X-
now used as a nature centre. Files as on any other. For the most part,
A collection of rustic cabins arranged in a circular fash- and considering the 117 stress-fueled
ion around a small stand of very tali fir trees fit the script episodes during which all manner of con-
well. A dead-end road, permitting single-lane traffic only, flict had the potential to manifest, such

offered problematic access to the site, and only essential arguments were either privately aired or
vehicles (generators,camera truck, first aid/craft service) simply ignored in the daily routine of pro-

were allowed on-site. As a consequence, valuable pro- duction. Of note, however, is an altercation
duction time was spent shuttling crew and equipment which occurred during a technical survey
for "Darkness Falls" (1x19). It was about
from the public parking lot 200 yards up the trail.
6;30 p.m. and the survey crew had been
Valuable production time was also spent standing
on the road since 10 a.m. It was late
around in let up long
the deluge, waiting for the rains to
February and the weather was foul, as
enough sound mixer Michael Williamson to record
for
were the moods of many of us after hav-
essential dialogue, which was being rendered inaudible
ing been incarcerated in a bus all day.
beneath the intense din of raindrops. This dilemma paled
Darkness had indeed fallen as we parked
in magnitude when compared to the foul weather which
on an isolated road in the Seymour
confronted us in the Seymour Demonstration Forest while
Demonstration Forest to examine our last
filming scenes at the sawmill office and on the logging road.
location. It was raining heavily as we
At one point early in the day, the rain was so heavy that
trudged back and forth on a gravel road
filming became impossible. First assistant director
while director Joe Napolitano attempted to
Vladimir Stefoff - usually rock-steady and upbeat with choose the spot he felt worked best for
his characteristic exhortation, "C'mon, people, we've got the scene. After ten minutes, the question
go" - tossed his waterlogged walkie-talkie on the
to
ground in disgust as director and crew huddled in groups
t) arose as to whether, in the
the forest, \Ne really needed
darkness
to trudge
of
fur-
trying to figure out exactly what we could shoot given the down a road which looked much
ther the
conditions. same at the beginning as at the end; it

Key grip Al Campbell - always ready with a story - only made accessibility for crew and
quipped that "it could be worse ... we could be out at equipment more difficult. Executive pro-
the Abbotsford Airport." This referred to a show Al and ducer Bob Goodwin stood in the pouring
I worked on in 1990 during which a 737 aircraft was rain — caught in the headlights of the bus

chartered for filming. On that day, it rained so hard - — arguing forcibly with Joe as we climbed
horizontal sheets driven by a strong wind - that B.C. back on the bus, watching, in growing
Highways posted a vehicle advisory warning motorists to amusement, the silent drama being
avoid using the freeway between Vancouver and the town played out thirty feet axA^ay. Mr. Napolitano
of Hope unless absolutely necessary. Director Stuart ultimately lost the battle and, whether by
Gillard -no stranger to filming in inclement weather - coincidence, mutual agreement, or design,

got so wet that, warning or no warning, a driver was dis-

never again graced us with his presence.

patched to hunt down new raingear and waterproof

As a postscript note, first assistant
director Vladimir Stefoff chanced upon Joe
boots.
emerging from a closed-door meeting with
The situation in the Seymour Demonstration Forest that
Goodwin later that evening, a glass of
day was, in some ways, as bad as that encountered at
wine in hand. Stefoff noted that Joe
Abbotsford. At 9 a.m. it was so dark that day was effec-
appeared "as if he had been crying; his
tively rendered night, at least where director of photogra-
eyes were puffy, his face red." Whether it
phy John Bartley's light meter readings were concerned.
was an allergic reaction to Goodwin's
Similarly, it is rare - even in the Lower Mainland - to see
peace offering is unknown, and what was
rain bouncing off a spongy forest floor. Once again, the
said behind those closed doors remains a
last word went to Al, who was moved to comment that he
mystery.

47
X Marks the Spot
hoped the weather at least remained consistent, as he
and his crew were in no mood to have to match a sunny
day to the current dismal weather. For better or worse, he
got his wish.
This episode marked the second and final time an
increasingly despondent director, Joe Napolitano. would
work on The X-Files (see The Silent Scream).

While filming scenes for "Elegy" in

Gastown, a rental car pulled up to

the unit park area and a girl pho-

tographed the location that doubled

for 66 Exeter Street in "Squeeze"
(1x02). As It turned out, she had
convinced her parents to travel
from Australia to Vancouver so she
could tour X-Files locations. She
was on set, met David and
invited
Gillian, and walked away in disbe-
lief of her chance encounter.

First assistant director Vladimir Stefoff (with the beard) and director
Kim Manners (leaning) discuss the blocking of a scene.

TOOMS
Eugene Tooms, the liver-consuming, hibernating killer, returns.
Circus: the "mobilecamp" comprising
hair and make-up, wardrobe, wash-
rooms, catering, and cast trailers.
MALL/FBI PLAZA
Together with the work trucks, our
CITY SQUARE MALL,
"unit" measured about 1 500
555 WEST 12TH AVE., VANCOUVER
linear feet.

It didn't take long for Tooms to return as the ratings for

second coming.
his introductory episode expedited a
However, the FBI had become familiar with his traits.
Even Mulder became suspicious of heating vents. Tooms'
demise in the escalator was a major concern as location
production assistants, special and our on-site liai-
effects,
son worked frantically to remove the "blood" from the
surface of the escalator. Seepage into the elevator's
motors might have caused extensive and expensive dam-
age.
Filming at this location required written approval from
all the store owners in the mall, and interior filming was
permitted after 6 p.m. only. The FBI plaza was filmed on
the steps north of City Square.

48
 SEASON ONE
BORN AGAIN

An eight-year-old girl is possessed by the spirit of a dead

police officer, who attempts, through her, to exact revenge.

ROLAND

A dead scientist, who has cryogenically preserved his brain,

psychically uses his autistic brother to continue his research
and to get rid of the scientists who were taking credit for his
work.

ITHE ERLENMEYER FLASKI

Mulder and Scully discover a government research facility in

which alien DNA is introduced into human subjects using gene

therapy. Mulder's investigation of the X-Files is shut down.

BRIDGE/OVERPASS
VANTERM OVERPASS, Alien nation.

CLARK DR.. VANCOUVER

An X-Files classic, this episode encompassed ten loca-

tions and five large builds on our soundstages which, at ti
that time, was extraordinary for a fledgling television
series. The marching orders here were to come up with a
bridge on which a clandestine exchange could be filmed. It
would take place at night and involve three vehicles and
gunfire. Complete control of all traffic between the hours
of 8 p.m. and dawn was imperative.
Initially, permission was obtained from the City of
Vancouver northbound half of the Cambie
to close the
Street bridge, but directorBob Goodwin was concerned
that the actual location appear isolated. Similarly, Bob
had planned to shoot a high-angle master shot of the
entire scene, which necessitated finding another location
in close proximity to a very high structure accessible as a
camera position.
The overpass we eventually used served all these Another X-Filei crtatuic.

needs. A camera position for the high-angle master shot

was found atop the adjacent grain elevators at the United
Grain Growers facility. Bob, who does not particularly
enjoy heights, nonetheless accompanied a small survey
as we followed a rather circuitous route of elevators and
catwalks up to the roof, where he very quickly chose a
camera position, blessed it with the words, "This'll do,"
turned on his heels, and quickly returned to sea level.

In order to get maximum production value from this

49
X Marks the Spot
location, director of photography |ohn Bartley requested
additional lighting for the grain elevators themselves, a
job which required special HMI lights with sealed electri-
cal boxes to minimize the risk of highly flammable grain
dust coming into contact with a spark or electrical
current. A row of lights was positioned at the foot of the
elevators to supplement the existent yard lighting and
provide depth for several of the reverse shots on the
overpass itself.

The only casualty of the evening was a cameo net which

had been thrown over a railcar parked beneath the over-
pass to hide its very Canadian markings. Sometime in the
early hours of the morning this railcar, and several
others, were abruptly shunted down the line, taking the
netting with them.
HMI lights: make use of mercury Although we had studio work on our schedule for
still
arc lamps which create light similar was our last location day in
this final episode, this
to daylight. Season One, and the crew celebrated with champagne at
sunrise.

MULDER'S APARTMENT
THE WELLINGTON,
2630 YORK VANCOUVER
t) ST.,

Camo camouflage netting,

net: The interior of Mulder's apartment had, like Scully's,

usually bro\A/n and green, used by already been built on one of our soundstages. So when the
the grip and greens departments to time came an exterior with which to pair our
to establish

hide unwanted visual elements set, we surveyed most of the brick apartment blocks in

which cannot be easily removed. Vancouver. Some were too rundown or otherwise poorly
situated to be believable as Washington, D.C., while others
incorporated window treatments or other architectural
details which did not in any way suggest the interior we

had already established.

The location we finally chose was situated in a quiet
upper middle-class neighbourhood in the area of
Kitsilano, and moreover, the landlord and tenants were
amenable to our considerable presence. This feeling of
goodwill did not extend to one nearby resident, with whom
1 had a rather convoluted and unproductive telephone con-
versation a few days before filming. Not only did he object
to the parking arrangements we had made, but he consid-
ered the show, "to be the work of the devil and the crew, in
doing the devil's bidding, Satan's puppets."
Had this become a recurring location, it no doubt
laap Broeker standing in for an extreme would have been one of David Duchovny's favourites.
close-up. It was only a few blocks from the house he rented in

Vancouver.

50
 SEASON ONE
PENTAGON WAREHOUSE
OPEN LEARNING AGENCY,
4355 MATHISSI PL., BURNABY

This location was when a com-

inherited from the Pilot,
prehensive scout of possible locations was conducted by
Louisa and her team. The problem which she encoun-
tered -and which would also encounter - concerned
I

scheduling and our desire to shoot these scenes during

the regular workday.
This caveat had proven very costly on the Pilot, and in

an attempt to savemoney, another comprehensive scout

of warehouses was carried out for this episode. Nothing
came even close to matching the thirty-foot-high racks of
files and records, meticulously arranged - aisle after aisle
- under one vast roof.
We therefore returned to what worked best and after
some negotiating, were given a "small break" on the
quoted fee. The price still reflected expensive employee
buyouts as, once again, we would be filming here during
the workday. In this case, the issue was one of dollar-for-
dollar production value, and few could disagree that this
was a truly unique and impressive location.
The debate, and the return to this location - which was
Chris' desire - affirmed for me a notion which was in the
process of becoming unspoken X-Files law: never settle
for second best when second best isn't good enough.
t>
We returned here with Main Unit to shoot scenes
for"Redux" (5x02), although a Second Unit booking
was cancelled. The fee for the cancelled booking
became a charitable donation to the Knowledge
Network, a local educational television channel.

Vancouver becomes Los Angeles.

51
SEASON TWO: JULY 1994 - APRIL 1995

By the halfway point in Season One, The X-Files had outgrown the
makeshift office and studio facility being leased from Spelling
Entertainment at the now-defunct Molson Brewery in Kitsilano.

We moved to North Shore Studios (which became Lions Gate Studios

prior to Season Five) and a situation more favourable to our produc-
tion requirements. We occupied two soundstages - later to be expand-
ed to three - and a lot more office space. The construction and paint
departments also moved into a shop from which they were better able
to serve the show's demands.
This physical expansion was accompanied by a growth in crew size.

In the beginning, we had discussed an ideal production schedule for

the show as encompassing an eight-day prep/shoot schedule, with five

days to be spent on our soundstages and three days on location. The

big advantages of shooting in studio were control of the environment

(weather, sound etc.), reduced "travel" costs, comfort level (close to the

production office), and savings on location costs (we paid for studio

space whether we were on location or not). On the downside, studio

work was visually limiting (interiors only) and increasingly expensive

for the construction department as sets grew more elaborate.
Conversely, the Lower Mainland offered a huge variety of accessible

locations - both exterior and interior - within an hour's drive of the

downtown core, one of the principal reasons for bringing a show like

The X-Files to Vancouver in the first place. And while it was often more
practical and cost-effective to "build" a morgue or a motel room or the

cabin of an actual airplane than to film on location, building a man-

sion or a supermarket or a restaurant was cost-prohibitive. In reality,

then, we tended to spend more time "out" (on location) than in studio,
typically six or seven days on location to one or two days in studio.

The size of the location department grew accordingly.

X Marks the Spot

Crazy on You ctp)

Over the course of five seasons on
the same show, a certain continuity
develops with respect to the location
department and location "contacts,"
who may be defined as everyone from
police officers to equipment rental
companies to snow removal business-
es and restaurant managers. Such
relationships have enabled discreet
solutions to problems of romantic indis-
cretion involving certain cast members,
excellent last-minute seating arrange-
ments In restaurants for technical
surveys, the avoidance of violent con-
frontations with psychotic citizens
attracted by the "aura" of The X-Files,
and the perceived potential for extor-
tion. It was during the filming of "The
Host" (2x02) that a situation arose
involving the sub-lessee of a building at
1 195 Richards Street and The X-Files.
We had made a contractual arrange-
ment with the Lessor of the premises
to erect a set (a medical examination
What a difference five years make: crew photos from Season One (top)

room) in the building. t) and Season Five (bottom).

We were scheduled to film on the

False Creek seawall near Anderson's
Restaurant and needed another loca-
tion nearby to complete our day's
filming.
For the record, the Lessor of the
premises had previously moved his
business elsewhere and was in no way
involved in the activities of the gentle-
man him Mr. B.) to whom he
(let's call

had sublet the property. At an on-site

meeting with both gentlemen, the
terms of our rental were discussed and
acknowledged. Paperwork changed
hands, as did a set of keys and a
cheque. The one stipulation was that
security procedures be strictly
observed, as Mr. B. had some equip-
ment in storage in a back room, which
he planned to utilize once he renovated
the building into a cafe and poolhall.
Our construction and set dec depart-
ments would take two days to
complete this set, which meant

54
 SEASON TWO
LITTLE GREEN MEN
Scully is teaching at Quantico and Mulder is running wiretaps.
dressers finally finished. She insisted
Until he learns of a radar telescope in Puerto Rico that has
on being left to lock up the premises
made contact. once she had completed her work.
The following morning was sitting I in

ARECIBO FOREST my office when the production co-ordi-

SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION FOREST, nator stormed in, announcing that
NORTH VANCOUVER there was a "fruitcake" on the phone
screaming about some stolen video lot-

The west coast rainforest changes with the seasons, tery terminals (VLTs) and threatening
providing different types of vegetation with a variety of our company with a lawsuit should we
green hues. Particularly in the summer, these areas pro- fail to "reimburse" him to the tune of
vide cinematic versions of tropical paradises such as the about $8,000. I answered the phone
lush landscape of Costa Rica needed for this episode. and calmed Mr. B. down enough to
hear his story, promising to investigate.
The Costa Rican rainforest was duplicated here a
Ipresented my version of the events
second time for "F. Emasculata" (2x22).
and asked him if he knew the woman
with whom the set dressers had
FLORIDA AIRPORT spoken, which he did.

PLAZA OF NATIONS, That afternoon, Mr. B. called again

770 PACIFIC BLVD. SOUTH, VANCOUVER and ranted at my assistant for several
minutes, threatening to expose the
This location, a unique building encased in glass, production company as enemies of the

provided an abundance of sunlight, appropriate for small businessman. I had, in the mean-
conveying a Florida location. The gods were on our time, called the gentleman with whom I

side that day, except when the steel drum performers 3D had made the original deal and briefed
him on the situation. He, in turn,
set up for their daily performance on the Plaza outside
the building, but they agreed to refrain from playing assured me that he would speak with
Mr. B. and that shouldn't worry about
during takes. I

it. An hour later, Mr. B. conned his way

onto the North Shore Studios lot and

THE HOST entered the front offices of The X-Files,
where he began screaming at the front
The flukeman humanoid mutation) escapes from office staff and production co-ordinator
(a the bilge of
a Russian freighter and into a New Anita Truelove. Flailing away, he
Jersey sewer systems, where
it attacks and infects people.
demanded to see me and again threat-
ened legal action, as he felt he was
being "blown off" by big business. He
SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT wanted his money now - or else.

lONA ISLAND CAUSEWAY, Truelove was beginning to see a front

RICHMOND page headline. As she later mused,

"the guy could have had a gym bag
"The Host" gave rise to one of the most grotesquely
with an Uzi in and mowed us all
it

loveable creatures ever seen on the show. From the bilge down. had to threaten him with a
I

of a Russian freighter to the sedimentation tanks of a fully- police escort to get him off the lot."
functional sewage treatment facility, this creature developed During the next week, Mr. B. called the
a fondness for the sewers of Newark, New Jersey (a truly production office several more times
wonderful setpiece designed by production designer (as many as four calls in one morning)
Graeme Murray and built by construction co-ordinator in an attempt to surreptitiously secure
Rob Maier - a.k.a. "Strobie" - and his crew). copies of our insurance policy.
Given the odiferous locale, the hot summer weather,

55
X Marks the Spot

and a 12 noon crew call, crew members were given the

I finally called the Vancouver Police choice of opting for the day off or wearing special breath-
Department and explained the situation ing apparatus (purchased by production at great cost)
to special events co-ordinator which filtered out the most offensive odours. Despite the
Constable Bob Young. He called Mr. B. offer, the entire crew reported for work that day, the
and told him to leave the production
overwhelming concern being the proximity of the catering
company alone, as we needed ade- truck to the sedimentation tanks. For the record, catering
quate time to investigate his claim and
was parked as far away - and upwind - from the facility
resolve the issue. Young also noted
as the geography would allow.
that was now up to Mr. B. to contact
it
This was obviously some crew mem-
not enough for
his own insurance company after filing
bers; recalling her very first day on The X-Files, second
a police report. Evidently this did not
assistant director Michelle Dutka (then a location produc-
sink in, because Mr. B. next called the
tion assistant) says her most poignant memory is that of
production office and, refusing to iden-
an after-lunch vomiting session with unidentified crew
tify himself, attempted to get the pro-
ducers' numbers in Los Angeles. It
members out by the far fence on the perimeter of the
property. Key grip Al Campbell later recalled his tech-
should be noted here that, given the
dates of our contract (which had nique for dealing with the location: "Whenever began to I

feel queasy, I'd visit the primary sedimentation tank - the

expired the evening before the VLTs
had gone "missing"), my security place where the raw, untreated sewage came in. A couple
arrangements and the fact that Mr. B.'s of minutes of that and I'd go back to whatever was I

own employee had unwittingly doing, feeling relieved and grateful that nothing else was
assumed the risk based on her refusal as bad as where I'd just been. For years afterward, no
to allow our employees to lock the matter how ugly a location was, I'd remind Chris of the
building, neither myself nor our legal sewage treatment plant, pointing out that nothing could
counsel at Fox that the production ever be as bad as that place. And we weren't going back

D
felt

company carried any liability for the there."

purported theft. At this point, we were Just before midnight, the plant's emergency alarm
simply trying to be a good corporate system sounded, causing a brief delay in filming.
citizen and help this man find out who Apparently this happened every couple of years and we
had taken his VLTs. Another call to Mr. were told that The X-Files was in no way responsible.
B. from Constable Young resulted in his Such "coincidences" were not uncommon to us as the
being informed that he now risked a show rolled from season to season.
visit from police officers if he persisted

in harassing The X-Files, as the pro-

FREIGHTER/ENGINE ROOM
duction was considering filingm harass-
PORT MANN HYDRO SUBSTATION,
ment charges. This prompted Mr. B. to
14115 KING ROAD, SURREY
"loseit" as he hurled threats and abuse

at Constable Young, who later recount- The notion of attempting to film the flukeman's escape
ed that this, in itself, seemed to sug- from the engine room of a real freighter was entertained
gest some degree of mental instability. only as long as it took to call the Harbourmaster's Office
Young informed me of this latest devel- and a couple of large private shipping lines and discover
opment and of the fact that Mr. B. was that absolutely nothing was in port and/or available to
no stranger to the criminal justice sys- us. Filming on a real ship - as we would find out soon
tem in Ontario. enough ("Dod Kalm" (2x19) and "Piper Maru" (3x15)) -
believe that Mr. B. eventually realized
I
was certainly not impossible, but it was very restrictive.
that with our knowledge of his criminal If had been decommissioned, chances were
a vessel
background came certain defeat and
there would have been no heat, no ventilation, and only
the harassment soon ceased. Not coin-
minimal on-board lighting. If, conversely, a vessel could
cidentally, the poolhall and cafe never
be found which was on a lay-over for a refit or reloading,
materialized.
then filming had better be completed when the ship set
sail. Local film lore includes horror stories of film produc-

56
 SEASON TWO
tions working on cruise ships and freighters which, in
port for a day or two, set sail with lights and equipment

frantically being thrown ashore as the ship sailed away

from the As the Harbourmaster would remind me
pier.

more than once over the years, "When a ship is loaded, it

leaves." It had weather considerations at sea to consider
as well as its own shipping schedule. There would be no
waiting around for "another take or two."
So the search for an alternative was on; if not a real
ship's engine room, then something which looked like it. I

was already familiar with an old hydro substation which

had been built in the I 950s as a backup power supply in
the event of nuclear war and then never used. The owner
was in the process of trying to sell off whatever generat-
ing equipment he could and the site was available as a Crazy Arms
location. Production designer Graeme Murray
Better yet, areas of the facility looked very much like possessed a unique language of hand
the bowels of a freighter. With the addition of some and arm movements which reflected
the state of the budgets: hands in his
gauges and piping, and an "aging job" courtesy of head
pockets meant he was on track, hands
painter Louis Solyom's department, the transformation
out of his pockets but around hip level
gave us a very serviceable engine room without the logis-
meant various departments - specifi-
tical headaches of working on a real boat.
cally construction, set dec, and greens
We returned here three seasons later to again use - were at least $2,000 over budget,

this location as a ship's boiler room, for "Patient X" hands somewhere at chest level meant
(5x13). the department had used up their bud-
30 get padding for the episode, and arms
waving over his head meant more crew
BLOOD members were needed and a budget
overage of $10,000 to $20,000 was
Electronic digital displays send messages to citizens of a small
expected. Department heads would
Pennsylvanian farming community, turning them into psychotic
often observe Graeme when wanting to
killers. An experimental insecticide is determined to be the root
get a sense of the magnitude of a pro-
of problem. ject. Construction co-ordinator Rob
Maier once said to greensman Frank
DEPARTMENT STORE/OFFICE TOWER Haddad, who had just finished a meet-
ARMY & NAVY, 502 COLUMBIA ST., ing with Graeme, "I need to know how
NEW WESTMINSTER high his hands went."

Army &i Navy Boutique is one of Canada's oldest

department store chains. Walking through the store is like
a walk into the past. While viewing the location during
the technical survey, production designer Graeme
IViurray's hands began an important reference
to fidget,
for construction co-ordinator Rob Maier and set decorator
Shirley Inget (see Crazy Arms).By the look of things,
Shirley was in upon aisle of goods had to be
trouble. Aisle
removed and redressed within a two-hour window prior
to shooting and early access for set dressing was flatly
denied. On the day of filming, waiting for the okay to pro-
ceed, Shirley and lingered about the store, shopping, of
I

course. At around 4 p.m., asked for an early start.

I

57
X Marks the Spot
Permission was grahted, and five set dec crew members
quickly descended: goods were boxed and shifted around
and gun racks and other items were installed, giving the
appearance of some mad holiday shopping frenzy.
Customers merely carried on, negotiating through all the
ladders, dressing, and tool boxes scattered in the aisles.

Location scouts spent plenty of

time in their cars. In four years
(Seasons Two through Five), Alan
Bartolic logged 52,486 km (32,613
miles) and David Caughlan drove
96,520 km (59,975 miles). The
polar circumference of Earth is

39,912 km (24,800 miles).

Chris with set decorating department head Shirley inget (left)

and Louisa.

t OFFICE TOWER
FIRST CAPITAL BUILDING,
NEW WESTMINSTER QUAY
Blood slabs: portable, translucent To create a bloody scenario, blood slabs were placed on
pieces of rubber shaped like pools
the terra cotta floor of the tower lobby as an alternative
of real blood.
to film blood which would have stained the tiles and
caused extensive damage. However, no-one had dis-
cussed this decision with director David Nutter. was told !

that it was my responsibility to inform the director about

the blood slabs. Ultimately, the blood slabs worked like a
charm. One slab was even permanently mounted on the
window of the locations office.

CLOCK TOWER COLLEGE

UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (UBC)

A man wielding a gun in a campus clock tower. . . . The

script was written with the clock tower at the university
in mind; however, guns are not allowed in public view at
this location and gunfire was completely out of the ques-
tion. To effectively portray this scene, part of the clock

58
 SEASON TWO
tower interior was built on stage and while on location, a
view of the gun was secretly captured.

AUTO REPAIR SHOP

MAIN SERVICE AUTOMOBILE CENTRE
298 ALEXANDER ST., VANCOUVER
This garage is one of Vancouver's favourite film
locations. A very reasonable standard rental fee was
established on the basis of previous experience, and for
that fee the shop was closed for the day. Film companies
often claim half a day's use of a space which in the
working world means four hours, but in film terminology
means six hours. When set dressing and wrap-out time
is added, a half-day can add up to ten to twelve hours.
^
Many businesses in Vancouver, including the Main
Service Centre, have been lured by the half-day scenario,
but that is now changing.

HOSPITAL
EVELYN SALLER CENTRE,
320 ALEXANDER ST., VANCOUVER

The lawns outside the hospital location were unkempt

when originally surveyed. The production designer asked
for approval to trim the grass, but on the day of filming,
the grass was still long, swaying in the wind. In a state of
panic, greensman Frank Haddad raced to the location to
save the shot.

"You touch my truck. I breal^ your face.'

LOCKERS - Teamster captain Ken Marsden

OLD YMCA,
6TH ST. AND QUEENS AVE. NEW WESTMINSTER

This location - used several times - became the home

of the police precinct. While filming, David noticed rows of
old lockers, and asked about purchasing a row for his
house. Locations arranged for him to have them for a
mere $150, much to David's delight.
This location was used as a police station, a
coroner's office, a prison, and a medical centre in
"Aubrey" (2x12).

59
X Marks the Spot

SLEEPLESS
Sudden Death Overtime ctp)

Very seldom were we, as location Mulder is partnered with Alex Krycek to investigate Vietnam
managers, flatly refused the use of a vets who were turned into killing machines as a result of a
location. And while this had much to do government "sleep eradication" experiment. One of them has
with the growing popularity and success acquired the power to kill through his waking dreams.
of the show, when that "no" did come, it
was usually accompanied by a behind-
the-scenes drama rivalling that seen
onscreen.
KAY'S DINER
While searching for an eerie construc- TWO-JAYS CAFE,
tion site in which to Introduce a new 81 WEST PENDER ST. VANCOUVER
character, "X," for "Sleepless" (episode
2x04), and espousing the "bigger Is The script called for a truckstop on the edge of town
better" philosophy, I approached the site in front of which several large rigs could be parked.
manager new General Motors
for the The lengthly dialogue scene necessitated traffic control
Place (now home to the NHL's
facility for sound recording. This latter caveat reduced our
Canucks and the NBA's Grizzlies), at options to three.
that time more than a concrete
little This downtown location was chosen for its great exteri-
shell with no roof, no floor, and no or appearance and spacious interior, its lovely vinyl-
seats. The initial reaction was positive, covered stools and formica countertops being an added
given the fact that we wanted access bonus. Due to the seedy nature of the area a cleaning
after hours for night filming only. Several crew in special suits was sent in to clean and disinfect
meetings and site visits by various the neighbouring streets and alleys.
department heads ensued, as well as
Although written as Kay's Diner, the real name of
the customary technical survey.
this cafe is featured prominently on screen. Sister
By this point in the schedule, prep
had usually reached the point of no
tl Samantha pays Mulder a late-night visit in this
diner on "Redux 11" (5x03).
return in terms of substantial last-minute
changes. Location agreements were
signed and insurance certificates
issued. Sets were constructed and BRONX STATION
locations dressed. Moreover, the direc- VIA RAIL TERMINAL, 1 1 50 STATION ST.
torhad Ideally blocked out in his or her VANCOUVER
mind the staging of dramatic and action
sequences given the specific geography This heritage structure was built between 191 7 and
of the location. 1919 on land reclaimed from False Creek. The building is

In this instance, my job was compli- memorable for its ornate neoclassical style and the old
cated by the fact that I was not dealing barber shop (and the very elderly barber) is now closed
directly with the building owners, but after some forty years of business.
with the site office. In location manag- The organizing locations such as this rests
difficulty in
ing, it always crucial to deal as direct-
is
largely in working around existing train schedules. And
ly as possible with those with whom
while rounding up bands of roving petty-criminals is not
final authority rests. However, given the
an activity usually associated with film crews, this
nature of this location and the number evening proved the exception, as assistant location
of contractors and subcontractors
manager Ainslie Wiggs explained: "It was Friday around
involved, someone in the ownership
I a.m. and the entire crew was exhausted after four days
hierarchy decided that the site manager
of location filming. We had been filming on the platform
should act as the intermediary between
with seventy extras, when first assistant director Vladimir
themselves and the production compa-
ny. All could do was comply.
I
Stefoff called me over to camera." It seems that a belliger-
ent extra was being particularly unco-operative and Val
wanted him removed from set. Ainslie asked him to leave,

60
 SEASON TWO
On the afternoon before we were
scheduled to film here, got a call from
I

a somewhat apologetic (and cha-

manager saying simply that
grined) site
therewas a "problem" with the location
agreement. My jaw hit the desk. The
machinery of crisis management was
revved up and numerous calls were
made. During the course of various
conversations, it was even suggested —

somewhat tongue in cheek — that

Rupert Murdoch (owner of Newscorp
and Fox) be asked to call Arthur
Griffiths, then owner of the stadium

regarding our little dilemma,

facility,
Nick Lea out of his Krycek character.
something which — in retrospect —
could have been very entertaining.
taking him by the arm in an effort to get him moving.
In any case, the real "problem"
"The next thing I knew, " she explained, "he's swinging at
seemed to lie with the specific wording
me and I'm ducking a punch." At this point, several crew of a couple of clauses in our location
members and the location production assistants inter- agreement. It was 3:30 p.m. had I

vened, physically marching the man out the main already called nearby B.C. Place, a
entrance, with security guards bringing up the rear. nearby stadium, as an emergency
"Once outside," Ainslie continued, "the guy taunted the backup since we were committed to
crew about the fact that a woman was running the show, being in that area of town.
before bolting for the park across the street (Thornton In the meantime, was suggested
t>
it

Park), where a group of his friends was hanging out." that perhaps their company lawyers
Seeing this, Ainslie dialed 911 and requested police assis- should speak with our Chief Counsel at
tance. was a little shaken by then and worried
"I that the Fox, Anatole Klebanow, and let the
guy might come back with his friends." experts Which is
try to settle things.

Within minutes, eight police officers arrived on the exactly what happened. By 5:30 p.m.
scene - four men and four women. The female officers the necessary paperwork was in place
began to round up the group, which further angered the and sitting on my desk. Filming went
man. Another officer explained that they had just come ahead as planned.
from a nearby Skytrain station, where they'd been watch- Or almost as planned. After filming
ing surveillance camera footage of an act of vandalism the scheduled scenes and viewing the

that occurred at the station earlier that same evening.

dailies, the was made to
decision

Several of the men in the group now being escorted to a

What eventually
recast "X" as a man.
appeared on screen was a wide estab-
paddywagon were identified in the video footage.
lishing shot of the facility followed by
"Finally," recalls Ainslie, "the paddywagon left, to a
close-ups of the recast "Mr. X" filmed at
round of applause from crew members."
a later date and on our soundstage.
The behind-the-scenes drama had actually begun a
little earlier in the evening, when executive producer
Bob Goodwin arrived on set and tranformed into his
wrathful "Bad Bob" persona. Filming ceased as Bob
herded director Rob Bowman into a corner for a rather Dailies: the unedited, processed
impassioned oratory on the reality of television produc- footage of the day's work, trans-
tion as it pertained to scheduling and the completion of ferred to video for immediate
the day's scheduled work in the allotted time. To say that viewing. Also called "rushes."
he was displeased with the pace of filming would be a
gross understatement.
61
X Marks the Spot

V.A. MEDICAL CENTRE

WILLOW PAVILLION (BASEMENT/THIRD FLOOR),
VANCOUVER GENERAL HOSPITAL, 855 WEST 12TH AVE., VANCOUVER

By the time this episode rolled around, The X-Files had

Augustus Cole's isolation cell \A/as already filmed repeatedly at a number of other hospitals
built In a service tunnel as a two- and care facilities, among them Crease Clinic (Riverview

wall set, utilizing the existing walls Hospital), St. Vincent's Langara, and the University
and ceiling of the tunnel.The set Hospital (soon to become B.C. Childrens' Hospital. See
was designed to accommodate the Hospital Site).

unrestricted access of hospital staff With the exception of Vancouver General Hospital,
and equipment throughout the day, which has never really espoused or supported a co-ordi-
the back wall and door being nated film policy, accessibility to hospitals for filming has
placed just prior to filming in the been contingent upon available space. If a hospital had
evening. an empty ward - or better yet, an empty floor - chances
were good that a deal could be negotiated for filming.
Available space was very much a month-to-month phe-
nomenon dependent on the need for beds. It was difficult
to predict and very much a coincidence of scheduling
which allowed us into some facilities at all.
Writer Howard Gordon wanted a different setting in
Walk and talk: a dialogue scene which to play scenes at a Vietnam Veterans' hospital in
between actors that takes place as New Jersey. With space available in the ancient Willow
they are moving. Pavillion, liaison Rick Lowe was anxious to bring
The X-Files to VGH in an attempt to convince manage-

t ment that filming could be both low-impact and prof-

itable, if properly managed.

While surveying the vacant third-floor ward, we had a

discussion about the lengthy walk and talk between
Mulder, Krycek, and a doctor. Taking Rick aside, asked I

him if we might consider the tunnels underneath this

Pavillion and, after a brief pause, he agreed, it was
definitely love at first sight as we stepped out of the
rickety old elevator at basement level and proceeded
along one of a series of long service tunnels. The dim
neon lighting, low overhead piping and ducting, and
glossy stone floors were a perfect fit with the script.
Hours of access were the primary restriction. Nothing
would happen down here until after the regular dayshift
knocked off and, even then, a reduced nightshift would
have to be accommodated.
The real problem - and probably the only reason we
didn't revisit this location - was the lack of a freight
elevator,which meant that construction materials going
to both the third floor set and the basement had to be
precut to fit the regular elevator or carried up three flights
of stairs.
Because of the fragility of the existing elevators, each
Stuntman Tony Morelli as an alien for "lose was operated manually by an attendant. And while we
Chung's 'From Outer Space'" (3x20). had been warned repeatedly by one of the regular opera-

62
 SEASON TWO
exceed the posted weight restrictions, we paid
tors not to
her heed until the first load of crew members -
little

among them myself, producer ].P. Finn, production

designer Graeme iVIurray, and construction co-ordinator
Rob Maier - hopped an unpiloted elevator and promptly

became stuck between the ground and basement floors.

The car descended just far enough that the operator,
returning from a bathroom break, could peer at us from
shoe level through the small glass window in the elevator
door, shaking her finger like a remonstrative school marm
as she chided us for disobeying the "rules."
And not unlike the mishap on the Westham Island
Bridge years later ("Killswitch," 5x11) involving the tech-
It was during the filming of a stunt
nical surveycrew and a malfunctioning swingspan, I

sequence on a Gastown street that

could only be thankful that it was us and not David or
Robin Williams, in Vancouver for
Nick Lea peering up through that window as they
the filming of Jumanji, visited the X-
received a scolding for disobeying the rules, going
Files set on his way home from an
nowhere slowly.
impromptu stand-up comedy gig at
Augustus Cole's isolation cell was built in a service tun-
a local club.
nel as a two-wall set, utilizing the existing walls and ceil-
ing of the tunnel. The set was designed to accommodate
the unrestricted access of hospital staff and equipment
throughout the day, the back wall and door being placed
just prior to filming.

t
DUANE BARRY
Former FBI agent, alleged psychotic, and multiple abductee
Duane Barry holds people in a travel agency hostage.

AQUATIC CENTRE/HOSPITAL/LAB
AQUATIC CENTRE AND CHEMISTRY BUILDING,
UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

During Chris' directorial debut we were again on cam-

pus at the aquatic centre. David was swimming laps as
part of the scene's action, and when he rose up from the
pool, his lower extremities also rose up. Calm and com-
posed, David delivered his lines perfectly. Women on set An autopsy lab for Scully.

were particularly observant during the filming of this

scene.
The generous fans in the chemistry department offered
their spectrometer lab for the FBI office scene. Another
office was used for a hospital room for the little aliens.

63
X Marks the Spot

COMMAND CENTRE/TRAVEL AGENCY/SCULLY'S OFFICE

WATERFRONT CENTRE HOTEL, 900 CANADA PLACE
WAY AND WATERFRONT CENTRE TOWER,
200 BURRARD ST., VANCOUVER
The nearby community police office
was remade as Scully's office The famous hostage-taking scene required two down-
("Duane Barry" (2x05)) on tine con- town storefronts situated across the street from each
dition tinat a police officer
(at our other and complete control of a street for picture cars.
expense) had remain inside dur-
to The two towers at the Waterfront Centre, separated by a
ing prep, shoot, and wrap. Scores fountain plaza, afforded the best visuals. Extras dressed
of police officers volunteered for in SWAT uniforms were positioned at the edge of a
the job. terraced pool at the hotel with a full view of the travel

agency decorated on the lobby level. The final scene was

filmed at the end of the "day," fighting the sunrise.
As a token of Chris' appreciation, a crew lunch was
held in the grand ballroom of the Waterfront Centre Hotel
ballroom, complete with white linen tablecloths and a live
Picture vehicle: a vehicle featured string quartet. Thus began the feast cycle. Whenever Chris
specifically in a shot. or Bob Goodwin directed an episode, they would supple-
Hot for picture: anything that will be ment the regular catered meal with things like ice
seen within the camera frame. sculptures, a sushi chef, and other extravagances.

TREATMENT CENTRE
ST. GEORGES SCHOOL,
3851 WEST 29TH AVE., VANCOUVER

t an example of blind optimism, three locations were

in

scheduled for one day: this one as well as a supermarket

scene and the abduction scene at Duane Barry's house.
While filming at the school, electrics were prerigging
A shooting delay at the Treatment Duane Barry's house with 18K lights were rigged in every
Centre ("Duane Barry" (2x05)) was room of the building facing the street, necessitating fans
caused when a sign — that Chris
and special staff to watch for fires. A lighting crane was
specifically requested to read
set up in the alley behind the house and a condor with
"Please line up quietly," a reference
another I8K was positioned on the street just past the
to One Flew Over the Cuckoo's
house, lighting up the entire neighbourhood. Local resi-
Nest — was discovered to have
dents brought out lawn chairs and prepared themselves
been incorrectly worded. Props
for a evening of entertainment.
quickly composed a new sign.
With a midnight curfew in residential areas on Friday
nights, we asked the police officer on site for an exten-
sion to the filming.He denied our request on the basis
that would disrupt the neighbourhood, even though it
it

seemed the entire neighbourhood was watching us film.

Fortunately, the abduction scene took only two hours to
When Scully is shopping ("Duane complete, two hours less than anticipated.
Barry" (2x05)), her basket is filled

with pickles and

cream, a subtle
ice ASCENSION
hint from the props department that
Gillian was pregnant. Duane Barry kidnaps Scully and takes her to the abduction
Mulder and Krycek give chase. As Barry hoped, the aliens
site.

take Scully instead of him.

64
 SEASON TWO
SCULLY'S APARTMENT
1419 PENDRELL ST., VANCOUVER

This episode marked Part Two of the first two-part

episode; many other two-parters would follow. We'd
already established both location and setpiece for Mulder's
apartment, as well as the setpiece for Scully's apartment
interior. And not unlike the search for Mulder's apartment,
the task was to find a suitably modest brick apartment
building and match it to the interior setpiece on our
soundstage.
We ended up at a smart-looking building in Vancouver's
West End, which holds a monopoly on brick architecture
in this city. Ironically, the six apartments in this building
are all spacious front-to-back units with good natural
light. Any one would have made a shootable
of these
location for Scully's apartmenthad the setpiece not already
been built during Season One.
The real challenge here came with parking and night
lighting requirements, as this is a neighbourhood of apart-
ment buildings and as such, very densely populated. In
order to effectively stage the "crime scene," a location
assistant began blitzing apartments and parked cars with
filming notices several days in advance to ensure the
highest possible degree of co-operation from neighbouring
residents.
50
When two con-
filming night sequences at this location,
dors and a scissor were standard order, along with a
lift

number of smaller lights placed in trees up and down the

street. The trick was to light the scene without lighting up
Scully's apartment building.
half of the adjacent apartments, for which tar-paper and
rolls of black plastic became an invaluable asset. Because

of the sensitivity of this location, filming curfews (II p.m.

camera wrap on weeknights, midnight on Fridays) were
strictly observed, although given the wrap time required
for lighting cranes, we always worked backwards from
curfew to accommodate the electrics department.
With the exception of the Pilot, we tended to avoid the
West End for these reasons, although we did throw a
stuntman from the third-floor suite (Dr. Dickens' apartment)
in an apartment block around the corner at I09I

Broughton Street in "Colony" (2x16). The shooting crew

was fond of locations such as this, since the strict obser-
vance of curfew with little or no possibility of extensions
made for a reasonably "short" night by X-Files standards.

65
X Marks the Spot

SKYLAND MOUNTAIN SKYRIDE

Unlawful Entry GROUSE MOUNTAIN SKYRIDE,
NORTH VANCOUVER
Occasionally, public enthusiasm for
the show created very real problems. Although the North Shore mountains boast three ski
Such was the case during the filming facilities, this location was pre-ordained. Again, scheduling
of scenes for "Red Museum" (2x1 0) on
is everything. Ski hill operators are not fond of disruptions
the street outside Uncle Herbert's Fish
during the regular ski season and we were fortunate to be
and Chips in Ladner.
here a few weeks before the first snowfall of the year.
Doubling as a small Wisconsin town,
We required complete access and control of a lift line for
the production had hired two officers of
the entire day, not only to feature during filming, but as
the Delta Police Department to control
transport to the mountaintop for crew and equipment.
vehicular on the
traffic street adjacent
The management dedicated the service gondola lift to our
to our set, as we were filming an exteri-
exclusive use, with an agreement that a small camera crew
or scene involving David and Gillian
could ride the passenger lift to film pass-bys of our lift.
and a group of "townsfolk." At some
point in filming, sound mixer Michael
The stunt sequence on the gondola - filmed quickly as the

Williamson asked assistant location sun was setting on our "day" work - was as hair-raising

manager Ainslie Wiggs to investigate as it looks, especially for first assistant director Vladimir

the source of loud music coming from Stefoff. David insisted on performing his own stunt for this

the second floor of an apartment com- sequence.

plex across the street in the next block. The backroad mentioned by the lift operator in the story
Given the nature of the dialogue scene actually does exist and takes about an hour to drive,
being filmed, he was having a great although a four-by-four is required as well as special per-
deal of difficulty recording "clean" lines. mission. The backroad which Duane Barry drives - as well
The manager of the complex had as the parking lot and chalet at the top of the hill - was
introduced himself to Ainslie prior to 30 filmed on a different day at neighbouring Mt. Seymour.
filming and offered his assistance if

necessary. With this in mind, Ainslie,

accompanied by a police officer, went
insearch of the offending party. PARK
Unfortunately, the intercom for the
ROBSON SQUARE,
complex did not list the manager's 800 ROBSON ST., VANCOUVER
number, so it was up to Ainslie and the
officer to enter by a common door in the downtown core. It must be visually
"Find a park
leading into the courtyard and from interesting and within one hundred yards of the Vancouver
there locate the source of the distur- Art Gallery." These kinds of requests can be a location
bance. At the same time, the remaining manager's worst nightmare, as we are tied to a primary
officerhad thrown a traffic cone onto location and hence at the mercy of the locale.
the balcony of the apartment in an
Where possible, we choose primary locations with prior
attempt to get the occupant's attention.
knowledge of additional location requirements, but sched-
While the first officer knocked on the
uling and availability do not always permit the obvious
door of the apartment, Ainslie left to
choice. Fortunately, we found a terraced plaza with a
check on-set activities. She returned to
waterfall backdrop around which to play this scene.
find the apartment door open and the
officer entering. In the meantime, the
To my dismay, a misunderstanding regarding the control
of a cascading waterfall during a crucial dialogue scene
second officer had found a ladder and
involving Scully's mother - played by Bob Goodwin's wife
climbed up onto the balcony.
Over the din of music, the sight of Sheila Larkin - and Mulder nearly ended my tenure on
two police officers entering his apart- The can be turned off in an
X-Files. For while the waterfall

ment from opposite directions under- instant,an additional thirty minutes or so are required to
drain the pools above and below.

66
 SEASON TWO
The outcome was a very emotional scene between
actors which had to be looped afterwards for clarity,
attempting to recapture the original intensity of perfor-
Looped: technically known as
mance as well as the consistency of the thundering
automated dialogue replacement
background. (ADR), voice synchronization by a
Exterior and interior scenes playing as Senator performer of his/her own on-camera
Mattheson'soffice were shot at the nearby performance (i.e., rerecording
Vancouver Art Gallery. dialogue), usually late at night after
a long day of shooting.

With Scully still missing, a solo Mulder investigates a series of standably shocked the occupant, who
apparent vampire killings in LA. was watching television with his four-
year-old son. For the record, the noise
was loud enough as
be in violation
to
KRISTEN'S HOUSE Which was
of local noise by-laws.
2700-BLOCK S.W. MARINE DR. perhaps the only saving grace in a
VANCOUVER scenario which resulted in a formal
complaint of unlawful entry and
Although this location is a private residence, it is wor- harrassment being entered by the
thy of mention, as Pavel Bure, then a Vancouver Canucks resident against both the police depart-
hockey had just purchased it. Pavel was on-site
star, ment and the production company.
during filming, and his presence sent a surge of excite- The complaint ultimately \A/ent
ment through the crew and office staff. There were more nowhere, as the production had no
requests for autographs from Pavel than any actor who responsibility over the behaviour of
appeared on the show. Some of the crew attempted to —
guess the number of women who would be willing
t> police officers,
whether in
whose first

the service of a film

duty

to share the pool with Pavel. Pavel told key grip company or not — is to uphold the law.
Al Campbell. "Lots."
The local residents had been petitioned for consent to
late-night filming at this location. Approval was given by In Cold Blood ctp)
everyone except a next-door neighbour who was away
on earth for a vegetarian might
Hell
during the petitioning. He called the office and insisted suitably be defined as internment in a
that the unit could not park along the grassy stretch in meat processing plant. In the case of
front of his house. We assured him that the grass would "Red (Vluseum" (episode 2x1 0), the
be protected with plywood. But on the second day of equivalent was found to be a night of
filming, he threatened to sue the company and obtain a filming at forty degrees Farenheit
court injunction to stop filming. After a lengthy conversa- amongst dangling sides of beef at
tion, we opted to pay him a fee. Initially a specified J & L Beef Ltd., a slaughterhouse and
amount was to be paid to a charity of my choice, then on meat packing plant in Cloverdale, south
the following day, his lawyer called and requested a of Vancouver. This is one episode
personal cheque. News of the exorbitant fee spread like where was very happy to send out
I

throughout the film community, essentially

wildfire our team of experienced
banning use of that location. location scouts to investigate all

The quotation inscripted on Scully's tombstone when possible options, which included the

she is presumed dead ("One Breath" (2x08)) reads: vilest of poultry processing facilities.

"The Spirit is the Truth."

In the case of the latter, the mere
mention of the words "cameras . . .

David and the actress playing "Kristen" were dating television show" was met with a sub-
at the time this episode was filmed.

67
X Marks the Spot

zero response, apparently because of

ONE BREATH
the negative press garnered by poultry
Scully suddenly returns. While she recovers from a coma, a
processors with regard to health stand-
ards and working conditions. Regardless,
guilt-ridden Mulder, who is unable to identify those responsible
for her condition, resigns.
aftera preliminary discussion of story
requirements and the cost involved in
creating ourown meat processing plant
(complete with rows of "fake" sides of FIREWALKER
beef on meathooks), the need to find a
suitable location became all the more A research team at a remote volcano become infected with a
pressing. parasite that has an Alien-like effect on their bodies.
J & L Beef was the choice. Not only
was management amenable to the idea,
but the facility was large and clean and, FOREST/FIELD BASE
most important, visually suited our SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION FOREST,
needs. Initially squeamish (being a vege- NORTH VANCOUVER
tarian)about leading a location survey
through the plant, must say that was
I I
The Cascade Mountain Range is close to Vancouver,
impressed by the operation. On the but not close enough to actually film there. The compro-
upside, the cool temperature kept the mise was a partial vista of the mountain from "the bone-
smell of death in abeyance. Unfortunately, yard" in our favourite forest, useful for scenes like these.
it meant winter parkas and gloves for the The exterior Field Base Camp set was built at this
shooting crew, who were asked to treat location and then later sold to The Sentinel television
as if were a win-
this "interior" location it
series. The interior of the field base was filmed entirely
ter "exterior"and dress accordingly. on location at a vacant BC Hydro substation, which sub-
Health standards dictated that any meat
handled by cast or crew be deemed unfit
for resale. For production, this meant
t sequently became a popular location for other production
companies.

"you touch, you buy," which, at $600-

$800 per side, had the potential to add
up fast. RED MUSEUM
Care was taken to park the catering
truck in the far corner of the yard, well A Wisconsin dairy region is home to a religious cult and ado-
lescents who disappear, then turn up in the woods nearly
comatose, wearing only their underwear, and with the words
"He/she is one" written on their backs.

CLAYS BBQ RESTAURANT

UNCLE HERBERT'S FISH AND CHIPS,
4866 DELTA ST., LADNER

Anyone for bovine growth hormone? This episode was

set in the heartland of Wisconsin. After some chilling rev-
elations, IVIulder and Scully wander into a restaurant for a

The town of Ladner was featured extensively in meal of - what else? - barbecued ribs. Several street

"The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06) where a scenes in front of the restaurant necessitated creating the
Canada Post Office became a U.S. Post Office. right small-town look, for which existing angle parking in

The post office was chosen because of its red this block was most helpful. A neighbouring barber shop,
brick faqade. Later, Chris announced that the automotive garage, and heritage building also helped sell

episode would be filmed in black and white. this location.

68
 SEASON TWO
During filming we encountered a "noise problem" emi-
was away from the plant Itself and the cater-
nating from a nearby apartment building. Perhaps it
ers wisely decided to avoid beef on the
that bovine growth hormone or just plain zealous enthu-
lunch menu. Similarly, crew members
siasm show, but local authorities found the source
for the
who — for religious or moral reasons —
of the disturbance by using some rather peculiar methods
were uncomfortable with having to work
(see Unlawful Entry).
in such surroundings, were offered the

day off — unpaid — on compassionate

EXCELSIUS DEI grounds.
Given the scope of work to be done
At a Massachusetts nursing home, seniors whose drug and the fact that we were working
regimen is supplemented by organic mushrooms evidence between scheduled shifts. Second Unit
psychokinetic abilities. returned here to film additional footage,
at which time employees were used as
TREATMENT CENTRE extras to perform the actual butchering
and cleaning duties. If there's a lingering
RIVERVIEW (WESTLAWN AND CREASE CLINIC),
image from that experience, it has to be
500 LOUGHEED HWY., PORT COQUITLAM
which was
that of the pet food truck
parked in a loading bay when we arrived
This was the first episode to be directed by a Canadian. on the morning of the technical survey.
Steve Surjik, director of Wayne's World, offered his ser-
vices because he was a fan of the show. The script for
this episode arrived only two days prior to actual filming. Murphy's Law (tp)

Not having seen the script, we nevertheless secured the Murphy's Law dictates that if some
Riverview site as the key location. On the Saturday before thing can happen — no matter how
filming, on a special survey of Riverview, Westlawn's improbable it may seem — it will happen.
history as an insane asylum asserted itself. While climb- To this dictum would add only that it will
ing the stairs to the second floor, Steve and could hear I
ti I

happen on a film set. The storyline for

voices. Alarmed, neither of us dared venture into the "Red Museum" (2x1 0) involved, in part,
bowels of the building. the crash of a small plane and the sub-
Given one of the most difficult challenges of the second sequent discovery of a mysterious brief-
season, Steve's show received ratings equivalent to case among the wreckage.
"Duane Barry" and "F. Emasculata," and better than The fiery crash was to be played as an
"Soft Light" and "The Calusari." "effect" at night. What was required was
a location in which the wreckage could
be strewn along a simulated crash path.
AUBREY A grove of trees at the edge of a pasture
or field w/ould do nicely, so long as some
A pregnant detective's nightmares evoke 50-year-old serial
sort of natural path or clearing existed in
killings while also instigating a modern-day imitator in the
the grove in which to create a scorched
Missouri heartland.
crash site.

The geography required by the script —

TIMBERLAND MOTEL rural Wisconsin — matched that of the
TIMBERLAND MOTEL, Delta area, which is where we would find
3418 KING GEORGE HWY. SURREY our barn and small town. It therefore
made production sense to locate this
Rural motels are located on or near major highways for scene in that area as well. A good loca-
obvious reasons of access and visibility. With most of the tion was found on the perimeter of Burns
"classic-style" motels having disappeared in recent years Bog, on agricultural land owned by a
- the victims of urban sprawl or changing travel patterns local farmer. Access to the pasture was
- it's not as easy as one might think to find quaint little good, if not a little muddy. More impor-

mom 'n' pop operations in a placid setting. tant, a natural swath occurred in the

69
X Marks the Spot
Our requirement here was for a row or more of
detached bungalow-style units with as classic a look as
possible. The Timberland's management was very help-
Hero: a featured prop or location. ful, but warned us of one rather "odd" individual who
declined to even talk to us. Because the scenes being shot
were night exterior scenes, we needed all porch lights on
units except our hero unit be turned off to indicate the
late hour. Having been down the road of non-co-opera-
tion before, we (cleverly) asked this individual to kindly
leave her light on. Of course, when she promptly turned it

off in protest, we rolled film.

THE COKELY HOUSE

13275 COLEBROOK RD., SURREY

This house was a gem of a location, set alone beside

a treed windbreak on the flats below Panorama Ridge.
Props guy Don McCill and ...a prop.
A long rutted driveway ran from the main road across
several sets of railway tracks and over a drainage ditch
stand of trees adjoining the pasture. to the house. Untouched for years, it retained much of

A bark mulch road ran along the back its original weatherworn turn-of-the-century character,

end of this grove, allowingaccess for while offering a large filmable interior layout.
lighting cranes and support vehicles. What many crew members remember, however,
of the
Arrangements were made with the
Delta Fire Department's Fire Prevention
unit to accommodate an explosion using
t is the fierce November
cold. While filming exhumation
scenes in an adjoining pasture at night, the mercury
dropped so low that frost actually formed on the backs
napthalene, gasoline, and black powder and shoulders of crew members clad in winter parkas.
which would produce a fireball rising one Similarly, the greens crew had pre-dug the site and the
hundred feet In the air. A full fire crew art department had placed a pattern of human remains,
with a pumper truck would be on-site for
but with the ground frozen solid, it was very difficult for
the duration of the explosion. On our pre-
the actors to actually dig.
vious location surveys to this site, had I

This location was so good that we had to return here

noted a small wooden shed at the side of
one other time for what would become the most
the access road leading into the pasture.
infamous of all X-Files. It played "Home" to the
A hand-painted sign saying "Danger . . .

Keep Out" was posted on the structure most unusual family of Peacocks (4x03).
along with an emergency phone number.
Parking for work trucks was problematic
in this location and we wanted to park IRRESISTIBLE
several vehicles around the shed for
quick access. left a message to this
I
Mulder and Scully investigate a series of gravesite desecrations

effect at the listed number, but my call in which the hair and fingernails of young female corpses are
was not returned. being removed.
On our final technical survey, we
arrived to find a pick-up truck at the
DIE HAND DIE VERLETZT
shed. A guy was loading boxes into the
back of the truck. I hurried inside with the
New Hampshire
The devil-worshipping faculty at a high school
intention of not only explaining our pres-
are put in their place by a true demon: a substitute science
ence, but of making a deal to park vehi-
teacher.

70
 SEASON TWO
FRESH BONES

A "processing centre" for Haitian refugees in North Carolina is

the site of military-perpetrated human rights abuses, which

lead to revenge, voodoo-style.

FOLKSTONE PROCESSING
VERSATILE SHIPYARD.
109 EAST ESPLANADE, NORTH VANCOUVER

The script called for a Haitian refugee camp in the middle

of winter in the middle of Vancouver. As a compromise to
a completely outdoor setting, a derelict, partially covered
building at Versatile offered the look of an oppressive
camp setting while keeping out the cold. The makeshift
camp set had to be completed before the Christmas
hiatus to ensure it was ready for filming on the first day Production co-ordinator Anita Truelove and
back in January. This necessitated twenty-four hour the snake used in "Die Hand Die Verletzt"
security during the holiday. (2x14).

What saw stopped me cold.

cles. I

EXTERIOR CEMETERY The room was piled high with crates

NORTH SHORE CEMETERY, of dynamite, which he subsequently
LILLOOET RD., NORTH VANCOUVER informed me were "perfectly harmless"
without the blasting caps. "They're in

During
months
this episode, we discovered the rainy winter
Vancouver are not the best time to dig graves.
of
X) the next room," he said matter-of-factly,
gesturing with a finger. The horrible

We located the site for a grave in an unused section of irony of our situation struck me. Not
this old graveyard in North Vancouver. The grave was only were we to park and work in the
excavated while the January rains descended and special immediate vicinity of an explosives
storage but we planned to stage
facility,
effects had to be called to location to deal with the influx
of water. Sump pumps were in full force and crews were
an explosion of considerable magni-
tude within 300 feet of several tons of
hand-bailing water. When director Rob Bowman arrived
dynamite. Moreover, in terms of pro-
on site, he was expecting the worst, and he got it. The
duction, we had reached the point of
water level in the grave rose even between takes, making
no return.
continuity almost impossible.
An alternate office number was
proffered as I hastily made two calls,

COLONY one to the Delta Fire Department and

one to the explosives company. The

An Alien Bounty Hunter kills a number of physically identical end result, to my relief, was a stern

(i.e., cloned) abortion doctors as Mulder and Scully give chase. warning to refrain from smoking any-
where near the building and an assur-
ance that our explosion — as described
MULDER'S FATHERS HOUSE — was perfectly safe given its proximity
6476 BLENHEIM ST., VANCOUVER to the storage facility. So why was I still

nervous?
As was,it filming went off without a
While Scully's mother's house actually "moved" a couple hitch. Well, almost. It seems that, after
of times over the years, Bill Mulder's house established being warned by both the locations and
itself as a recurring location, inasmuch as we visited this transportation departments to keep

71
X Marks the Spot
home on three separate occasions. The script placed this
house on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, which is
their full pumper truck off the soft
where executive producer Bob Goodwin wished it to
access road at the back of the property
remain. Moreover, having vacationed at Martha's
— it had no business being there — the
Vineyard on one occasion, Bob had a very partic-
at least
fire crew decided to take the vehicle
ular idea of whathouse should look like.
this
four-wheeling. Within three minutes, It
As noted elsewhere, recreating New England in south-
sank In the soft bog, woefully stuck. If
western British Columbia is a stretch to say the least.
that wasn't enough, some weeks later I

Faithful examples of New England or Cape Cod-style

received an invoice from the Delta Fire
architecture are scarce, but the house we finally found
Department for the towing costs asso-
could have been a New England transplant. Located on
ciated with extricating the vehicle from
a sloping corner lot, this white clapboard structure
the mess.
occupied the uphill portion of the property. And while the
house itself resembled a large beachhouse, the spacious
Here Comes the Rain Again
grass lawns and high cedar hedge gave it a substantial
The Lions Gate Travel Lodge provid- presence. The real selling point was the wrap-around
ed the backdrop for a Season Four veranda.
interview with David, an interview he
consented to after weeks of negative
media coverage about his "rain" com-
ments. Fortunately it was a sunny day •11 X 15*3 FttnlyRoom.21)(16
when David apologized to Vancouver.
But David restated that Vancouver is a
htancte Undm»l(i Evwyone't ftrvourtts hanw • a otassio farmhm
place of much rain. David is right. Rain,
sited to <»teh South & West sun overiootona »oei3bon^ pi
rain, and more rain. Film crews detest '^^
try «8tatB8. Featured 'Cape Cod* house on the x-fMin eeiles.
working twelve-hour shifts in the rain, «w levels fB:.
and time and money lost because of it. 30 fed sunroom, l»iqu«is||||||j(;$.bumin9 stove in fianmy room & ti

Savage Love (tp)

Shows involving exotic animals

engender certain "technical" problems
peculiar in themselves. For "Fearful
Symmetry" (2x18), an elephant named
Bubbles was trucked in from California.
Chris at Mulder's
Daily reports, peppered with amusing
father's house,
expletives, on Bubbles' progress and
which was put up
health were issued by production co-
jor sale in 1997.
ordinator Anita Truelove. For my part,
I learned something about municipal
by-laws and the appearance of circus
animals on public property. As scripted,
Bubbles runs down a road and narrow-
ly avoids a collision with a tractor-
trailer. Most municipalities in the Lower
Mainland now have bylaws in place END GAME
prohibiting the use or appearance of
circus or show animals on public
The Alien Bounty Hunter trades Scully for Mulder's "sister"
streets or property, meant ostensibly Samantha, who is subsequently killed. The Alien Bounty
to protect such creatures from exploita-
Hunter, with Mulder in pursuit, travels to the Arctic and
tion and inhumane treatment. For this
escapes.

72
 SEASON TWO
MOTORLODGE
LIONS GATE TRAVEL LODGE, reason, we ended up on a quiet

2060 MARINE DR., NORTH VANCOUVER country road South Surrey, the only
in

municipality in the Lower Mainland

The X-Files should have permanently rented rooms 224 that would allow such an activity at

and 226 given the number of times this motel was used that time. The road was barricaded
for filming. Each time the motel's name above the lobby and filming proceeded.
was changed. Eventually construction co-ordinator Rob Bubbles, I must say, was a true

iVIaier could prep the location within two hours. marks with
professional, hitting her
as much accuracy — and with more
The X-Files used this location on at least ten
consistency — than many actors.
occasions.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said
for the driver of the tractor-trailer who,
in overshooting his mark by a couple
FEARFUL SYMMETRY
of feet, collided with Bubbles. Both
elephant and truck were at a near-
Aliens are abducting zoo animals in Idaho, in an attempt to
standstill at the time, but the force of
ensure the survival of the species.
impact with a creature the size of a
Volkswagen beetle was enough to
DOD KALM shatter the truck's windshield. Bubbles
merely surveyed the damage, turned to
The crew of a Navy destroyer succumbs to an illness that her handler, and began the slow trudge
causes them to age rapidly and die. back to her "first position."
As a sidenote. Bubbles not only con-
U.S.S. ARDENT sumed mass quantities of fruits and
straw, but evacuated similarly massive
H.M.C.S. MACKENZIE, BARRY POINT TERMINAL,
PENZANCE ST., BURNABY t) quantities of waste, something which
left the location production assistants
Most of this episode was spent in the bowels of the very nervous when it came time to
H.M.C.S. Mackenzie (a former destroyer) inhaling the dregs clean up. To this end, it can be said
of kerosene and freshly painted sets. Unfortunately, there
that the handlers were also, thankfully,
is no ventilation on these old ships, other than a trip to
professional and managed to contain
this potential problem with practiced
the deck.
skill and very large shovels.
The ship was initially moored
Westminster
at New
A tiger also appeared in this episode.
Quay but relocated to Barry Point, a more remote site,
It prowls through the bowels of a
upon Chris' request to avoid urban ambient light while
construction site at night, \A/here it is
filming night exterior scenes, which was done at the cost
of a mere $10,000. Given that the ship was to portray an
abandoned vessel, production designer Graeme Murray
requested the ship be "paint-aged" then repainted back
to its original colour after filming. Barges were dispatched
along with paint crews and spray guns.
On the second day of shooting inside the overheated
It ^
^,g;mm
vessel, thecrew surfaced on deck, only to be blinded by a
snowstorm. The ship was moored at a dock situated at
'"""^^^
/IN!'
the base of a steep hill. The Teamsters, anticipating that
many of the crew vehicles might get stranded, managed
It was while filming at this location that the show
^
The H.M.C.S. Mackenzie
^ ^^^^fUffHSBTui^

is now an
M
"^^^^1

artifical
won its first Golden Globe Award, for best dramatic reef at the bottom of the Georgia Strait ("Dod
series. Kalm" (2x19)).

73
X Marks the Spot
temove them to the top of the hill. After a long search, a
snowplough was located, thanks to a nearby oil refinery.
eventually cornered and "shot." For
obvious reasons, this location had to
be safe for both crew and creature, and
containable in the event that the tiger INTERIOR ICU AND INTERIOR GILDESKALBAR
got spooked and made a run for it in JERICHO SAILING CLUB,
downtown Vancouver. For those now 1300 DISCOVERY ST., VANCOUVER
living in the then-half-completed east
tower at 555 Jervis Street, it might be The two other locations scheduled for this episode were
amusing to know that the upper level of a hospital and Norwegian bar. We wanted to find one site
the underground parkade was where we could film both, even though the combination
employed as a location. The biggest of the rustic bar and an austere hospital ward seemed a
issue here became one of keeping the nearly impossible task. The Jericho Sailing Club fit the
tigercalm and warm, since it was bill. The fact that the dark, dingy bar setting was only a

February and very cold in the unheated few steps from the bright, stark ICU unit set was amazing
underground parkade in the middle of to the crew.
the night. While we were waiting for the trucks to arrive at
lericho, David and his dog Blue jogged by. David rarely
Florida North arrived on location early. The close proximity to his home
had not gone unnoticed. On the following day, the pro-
"Humbug" (2x20) was a dark comedic
ducers approached locations and requested that locations
episode written around circus freaks.
close to David's home be found for future filming.
Jim Rose and The Enigma of the Jim
Rose Sideshow were
Travelling Circus
The bartender in this episode and in "Never Again"
cast as Dr. Blockhead and The
(4x13) was Barry (Bear) Hortin, a Teamster who was
Conundrum. A funeral involving the responsible for pulling Gillian's trailer.

recently departed Gerald Glazebrook t)

and the grandstanding Dr. Blockhead,
who tears his way out from beneath the HUMBUG
turf under Glazebrook's coffin, required
we "dress" our own cemetery at
that A trailer park populated by ex- and aging circus freaks is

Semiahmoo Park in White Rock. plagued by a series of bizarre murders.

This location was convenient and in
some ways ideal, as was close to the
it

trailer park — a key location — and it also

TRAILER PARK
held a commanding vie\A/ of the ocean. MEMORIAL CAMP, 16327 BEACH RD.
Headstones and grave markers were WHITE ROCK
trucked in and a hole very carefully dug
and concealed for Dr. Blockhead's There are a few geographies which are difficult, if not

"entrance." As we were on Semiahmoo

impossible, to duplicate in the Lower Mainland. Among
Band land, there was some concern that them, Florida stands out. That said, a script set in Florida

we might unearth either relics or human arrived and called for, among other things, a trailer park
remains. known as The Gulf Breeze. Aside from the obvious problem
The night before filming, it snowed with climate - it was late February - we needed to avoid
lightly for several hours. By calltime the coniferous trees.
next morning, our "Florida cemetery" We found our location close to the ocean, at a trailer

was blanketed with an inch of snow. We park so near the Canada-U.S. border that you missed if

had to shoot, so everyone pitched in. the turn-off, you'd end up at Duty Free Shopping. The
The special effects boys grabbed tiger site itself was managed by the Royal Canadian Legion and
torches while the greensmen and loca- home to a vast array of trailers, from the funky rustic to
the modern state-of-the-art. Its denizens were primarily

74
 SEASON TWO
retirees who spent the warm summer months here, treat-
ing the camp much as one might treat a lakeside cabin or
retreat. On a sunny day, the unobstructed view of the tionscrew used rakes and brooms to
ocean across the road was spectacular. cemetery large
clear a section of the

Aside from relocating a troupe of Brownies, who were enough to stage the sequence without
scheduled to camp over for the weekend in the dormitory,
snow being visible.
As a postscript note, our production
the park was still closed for the winter. Filming here in
company usually housed out-of-town
Julywould have been unthinkable.
talent at the Sutton Place Hotel (a five-
Even the vegetation worked, although not without the
star facility). In this case, the Jim Rose
addition of several truckloads of trees by greensman
entourage requested lodging at a hotel
Frank Haddad and his crew to make the site look smaller
located just off the far-from-exclusive
than it actually was. The weather was thankfully unsea-
Granville strip. As production co-ordina-
sonably mild and sunny, with one chilling exception (see
tor Anita Truelove recalled, "We offered
Florida North).
them the Sutton Place and they
requested this place they'd stayed in

before. guess it made them feel more

I

comfortable. Anyway, it had gone

downhill since their last visit, to the
pointwhere they'd no sooner moved in
than they wanted to move to the Sutton
Place."

Organ Origami
Organ Origami refers to a "sideshow"
created by Jim Rose to more
t> lize the potential of the male genitalia,
fully uti-

b^^]s9S which he believes is generally under-

used 75-80 percent of the time.
Shooting a scene at the trailer park for "Humbug" (2x20). While in a special effects make-up
meeting for "Humbug" (2x20) — a meet-
Down the road from the trailer park was the tidal
ing which included Chris, Bob Goodwin,
waterway in which Mulder, out for a jog, spots the
J. P. Finn, Joanne Service, and Anita
emerging tattooed Conundrum clutching a salmon in his
Truelove — Rose gave an impromptu
teeth. For the record, The Conundrum is known in real
demonstration of this routine (he had a
life as The Enigma (affectionately Niggy), who planned to
somewhat hideous make-up applica-
use some of his earnings from this show to get more
tion covering his chest). He proceeded
tattoos. Standing there in his loincloth, 1 wondered just to drop his skin-tight leather pants and
where he intended to put more tattoos. If you ever meet
twist hismember into what very closely
Jim Rose of the Jim Rose Travelling Circus Sideshow, ask resembled a Flying Squirrel, much to
for a demonstration of "organ origami." the intrigue of his "audience." Ever the
Contary to rumour, Gillian did not eat the bug sho\A/man, Rose then turned his back
Jim Rose's Dr. Blockhead offered her. She did, and, reinventing himself, turned around

however, put
to reveal first a Wrist Watch and then a
it in her mouth.
Windsurfer.
Inspired by this feat. Bob suggested
THE CALUSARI he attempt Three Midgets Fighting
Under A Blanket. It was, Joanne
An old-country Romanian grandmother tries to save her
recalled, "one of those unbelievable,
grandson, who has been possessed by "the howling heart of
very special X-Files moments."
evil."

75
X Marks the Spot

F. EMASCULATA
The Invisible Location ctp)
A deadly tropical parasite is introduced into a Virginia prison
Sometimes the pain and hardship population. When two infected cons make a break, Mulder and
endured in finding a location so explicit Scully race the clock to prevent an outbreak.
to a storyline that it just has to be this
or that hardly seems justified by the RURAL GAS STATION
two seconds of soft-focus screentime it DELTAPORT FARM MARKET,
ultimately receives. And while we would 2757-52ND ST., DELTA
be wise to remember that this is the
nature of the medium — which is televi- Rural gas stations are not unlike rural motels in that

sion — such an explanation does little they're invariably located on busy highways. Similarly,

to soothe the final frustration of the many have fallen prey to oil company monopolies and
invisible location. been driven out of business.
A large number of options were dis- Besides the visual component of the story, this
cussed in the search for Gerald location had to accommodate the safe landing of a
Glazebrook's backyard pool in helicopter, for v^hich pilot involvement was necessary
"Humbug" (2x20). Below-ground pools early in the scouting process. This requirement precluded
either failed to provide the necessary the use of any existing gas station in the Lower Mainland,
height for camera positions or the for either aesthetic or logistical reasons. Typically, a week
houses to which they were attached to ten days is required for regulatory approval of flight
were deemed unsuitable. Running out paths and associated activities.
of time (we had already begun to film in this case, let's just say that the locations and art
this episode in White Rock), it was
departments got together and created a piece of movie
finally decided that an above-ground
magic, transforming a fruit and vegetable market in Delta
pool would be rented and installed in
the backyard of a suitable house.
Given the Florida setting, director
Kim Manners was adamant that the
t into the desired location. Sitting
the market itself was
on
and
a large corner
fronted by a dirt parking
offered good rural backgrounds and reverse angles. The
lot
lot,

proximity of agricultural lands on all sides gave the pilot

house be of a two-storey woodframe
the clear flight path necessary in case of an emergency
design. If existing landscaping offered
landing.
some — perhaps by way
visual interest
lust as important was the lone hydro line servicing the
of gnarly old trees or bushes — so
market, which could easily be temporarily removed with-
much the better. The scenes, which
out the need to remove power poles. This provided the
would document Glazebrook's untimely
helicopter with an uncluttered landing area just a few feet
demise, were to be shot at night to add
to the sense of campy horror.
from the building. Gas pumps, an office, a washroom, a
The house we finally chose was an telephone booth, and signage were added to affect the
old two-storey clapboard structure makeover, which fooled at least one passing motorist
painted a soft yellow. Located at 1 1 20 who stopped for gas.

Harold Street in North Vancouver, the In the evacuation scene from the "washroom," the
backyard was large and empty, with quarantine gurney never actually exits the washroom
several old fruit trees standing to one (as was written) on its way to the waiting chopper.
side of the property. And vi/hile there Through an unfortunate error in measurement, the
was plenty of room for the pool, the washroom doorway was built too narrow to accommo-
ground sloped from east to west, which date the bubble.
meant that the greens crew would be
performing a major excavation to level
the site: a hole twenty-four feet long,
twelve feet wide, and four feet deep.
Nonetheless, a deal was made with the
owner whereby a nicely landscaped

76
 SEASON TWO

patio would be left once the pool was

I removed.
A pool company was hired to assem-
ble and fill a pool on the prepared site
and a canvas of the neighbourhood
undertaken, as we were prepared for
an all-night shoot. In the end, Manners
and the Second Unit crew wrapped
things up at around 3 a.m.
Gas . . . food . . . quarantine. The rural gas station for
Watching the dailies, was appalled
I

"F. Emasculata" (2x22).

by how little of anything had been
recorded by the camera. The house

BUS STATION was all but Invisible and the trees — the
spooky old trees — were nowhere to be
DENNISON DODGE/CHRYSLER, seen. The action sequences in the pool
HWY. 17 AT VASSEY RD., DELTA
were, however, great. Which is ulti-

The prospect of occupying a fully operational bus mately what counts, although joked I

afterwards that the pool could easily

station was never considered beyond a quick survey of
have been placed on the grass at
available locations for the sake of curiosity. Neither the
North Shore Studios and the same
Vancouver nor the New Westminster depots were attrac-
effect achieved for a lot less. A whole
tive enough to fuel a debate, so the scout for a space in
lot less.
which to create our own Greyhound bus station began.
The way this episode had boarded out, first assistant
director Vladimir Stefoff was pushing for a location to be
found in the Delta area, where we were already commit-
:iO
ted to a day's worth of work at the rural gas station.
He also hoped that there would be some way to put
several Greyhound cruisers inside whatever facility we
chose, as the weather forecast was bad. Because the Boarded out: refers to the first

scenes involving the buses themselves were to take place assistant director's production
at night, an interior would provide the ability to shoot board, on which each scene in a
this work day for night before moving to the main script is carefully laid out and
passenger waiting area. scheduled.
it so happened that a car dealership and showroom sat

vacant just off the freeway and immediately south of the

Deas island Tunnel on the Delta border. Not only was it
situated on an acre of parking lot, but the structure itself
contained a large glassed-in showroom with a mezzanine
and a larger shop area with enough service bays to park Day for night: the practice of shoot-
several buses. The owners had moved to a new facility in ing during the day, but making the
Richmond and were in the process of selling this one. scene look as though it is taking
They were, in the true spirit of their profession, more place at night.
than happy to turn a buck from our location rental.
With a little signage from the art department, a few
benches from set dec, and a contingent of extras, this
venue was transformed into a smart-looking bus station.
Several Greyhound buses were angle-parked in the
service bays to complete the illusion.
An incident of sorts occurred in the parking lot during

77
X Marks the Spot
the afternoon while the shooting crew was at work inside.
"Whatever you do, don't Transportation co-captain Baba Ram and one of his hair
swallow (TP) . .
."
& make-up trailer drivers became involved in an emotion-
"I cannot believe the conversation I al debate over some contentious issue. Unable to agree,
These were my words to
just Inad." they decided to settle the issue with a fifty-yard sprint
location scout David Caughlan as hung I through the parking lot. The winner would also receive a
up the phone after a rather convoluted ten-dollar cash "prize." Neither contestant could be char-
discussion with a Richmond city official acterized as athletic, but Baba was younger and carrying
in early April 1995. After a thorough far less excess weight than his opponent. He also confid-
scout of the Lower Mainland for a stream ed in me that he'd been a sprinter as a kid in Fiji, in one
or waterway
which in to drive a truck of those moments which can only be called surreal, and
loaded with chickens (actually, chicken with arms and little legs a-pumping, Baba breasted the
feathers), we had come upon a suitable tape far ahead of his Teamster brother, thereby settling
location at a rural junction in Richmond. the argument. As one spectating crew member noted, this
As is typical of this area of Richmond,
was, "one very sick remake of Chariots of Fire."
irrigation ditches or sloughs separate
agricultural lands from a network of rural
roads. The script requirements for "Our SOFT LIGHT
Town" (2x24) \A/ith respect to this location
were three-fold: (1) come up with a coun- A physicist's botched experiments into dark matter leave him
try road adjacent to a waterway into with a lethal shadow.
which a vehicle could be safely driven
into the ditch and partially submerged,
TRAIN STATION/PLATFORM-AM BUILDING
(2) cover a portion of the surface of this
VIA RAIL, 1150 STATION ST., REAR OF 48 WEST HASTINGS ST.,
waterway with a solution consisting of VANCOUVER, AND PACIFIC MARINE TRAINING INSTITUTE,
environmentally-friendly red food colour
and cooking oil (a special effect), and
(3) locate an easy access point to this
waterway — preferably nearby — from
t 265 WEST ESPLANADE, NORTH VANCOUVER

This was Vince Gilligan's first script, which he wrote

because he was a huge fan of the show. During filming,
which a "dragging operation" would we noticed a very quiet man carrying a camera kept
discover human remains. showing up at all the locations, hovering around the
I had learned years earlier, while scout- periphery of the set. it turned out to be Vince, who
ing locations for the Paramount feature financed his own Vancouver to observe the making
trip to
Intersection, how difficult this first require-
of his episode. Vince would later write other episodes
ment could Assuming a road in cor-
be.
many writers, his scripts (and those of the
and, unlike
rect proximity to a waterway could be
Glen Morgan and James Wong) were not subjected to the
found, chances are that any waterway in
same degree of revisions by Chris. Their scripts meant
the Lower Mainland would be fish-bear-
that "real" prep could commence immediately.
ing, in which case the Department of
The train station and platform are exactly what they
Fisheries was unlikely to issue a thumbs-
are. The Pacific Marine institute permitted filming after 5
up. We had, nonetheless, found a water-
p.m. only; this time constraint hampered the expectation
way seemingly devoid of fish, and with
for a relatively early night wrap and a relaxation of the
modifications to the flatbed we were
intending to use (with the engine,
rule was warranted. 1 spent an hour in the Dean's office;

crankcase, and oilpan removed and the just to get rid of me, he approved our request to start

filming at 2 p.m.
brakelines drained), had come to an
agreement on this point with the neces-
sary departments at City Hall. OUR TOWN
A stuntperson/driver would simply sit in
the cab of the stripped-down truck and An Arkansas town with a thriving poultry business must
be catapulted into the Woodward Slough. account for the disappearance of an FDA inspector and
several citizens.

78
 SEASON TWO
THE CHACO MANSION
1388 THE CRESCENT, VANCOUVER
As for the final requirement, we were
lucky. A resident living across the road
Eerily prescient of "mad cow" disease, this episode
(we would ultimately use part of his prop-
called for a grand Southern residence in which the
erty to park worktrucks) had built a small.
bizarre chicken magnate Mr. Chaco could reside. Our
Muck Finn-style dock on the slough about
west coast concept of a mansion usually has little in a hundred yards from our intersection.
common with the corresponding American vision of This would become the location from
California's Hearst Castle or the lavish estates built by which the dragging team would operate.
the Vanderbilts and Astors around Newport, Rhode The contentious issue — the source of
island at the end of the I 9th century. my disbelief — was the city of Richmond's
We chose The Hollies, as this estate is known. refusal to grant us permission to put the
Sitting on a 2.2-acre lot in the heart of Shaughnessy special effects solution into the water.
Heights, it was built in 1912 for Pacific Great Eastern In the course of petitioning local resi-
Railway mogul George MacDonald. dents and informing them of our intended
This mansion features nine bedrooms, twelve bath- activities, location scout David Caughlan
rooms, five fireplaces, and a grand entrance hall com- had learned some interesting things.
plete with carved wood staircase, and a marble floor. The junction in \A/e had
the road
An addition to this home features an Arthur Erickson- chosen to drive the truck into the slough
designed glass conservatory and pool. And while it's was, it seems, a natural choice.
not the largest home in the city, from the street it Residents across the road confirmed
instantly conveys both the grandeur and faded glory of that,over the years, several vehicles —
the deep South. — had
usually travelling too fast at night
missed the turn and ended up precisely
Script approval and deep pockets are tantamount to
filming in this mansion. Out of respect for the owner's
religious beliefs, scenes involving death or bad omens
(fire, etc.) may not be filmed here. As a result, the shot
^ where we intended to jump our truck. Any
incredulity on behalf of the neighbours
was not aimed at our choice of location,
but at our intention to send a human
depicting the shrunken heads in the armoir was filmed
being into the drink with the vehicle.
elsewhere and edited into the existing sequence.
A couple of years earlier, the driver of a
Coincidental to our story, a previous owner of this
car which had dunked into the slough
property died in the library wing of the house. The
had consumed large amounts of water.
new owner had the wing demolished and the original
His injuries were apparently minor, but a
stonework buried beneath the considerable grounds
few months later he began to complain of
should future owners wish to rebuild. Ironically, the
acute chest and stomach pains. He was
admitted to hospital, where he died
shortly thereafter, apparently from toxic
poisoning associated with the bacterial
composition of the sloughwater itself.
The waterways and sloughs bordering
this farmland form drainage ditches for
the adjacent farm fields. Pesticides used
on the crops drain into the ditches, along
with all manner of feces. As one resident
put it, "tell your stuntman that, whatever

he does, he'd better not swallow."

Hearing this, became concerned for
I

the health of stuntman Ken Kirsinger and

hired a local lab to test a water sample
'Wff 1 > I
from the slough. Given what the local
The flatbed truck comes to a stop ("Our Town" (2x24)).

79
X Marks the Spot

owner chooses to live in a large coachhouse in back of

residents were saying, I found City Hall's the property, furnishing the mansion as needed for par-
intransigence puzzling, to say the least. ties and other social events.
The results of the test were predictably The current owner of The Hollies bought the property
horrifying. Little wonder this slough would inOctober 1991 for a then-record $8.1 million. He
not support fishlife. then broke the news
I

subsequently had the address changed from 1350

to Ken who, like a true professional, grit- The Crescent to ! 388 The Crescent, the pair of eights
ted his teeth in firm, if not utter, resolve.
symbolizing prosperity within the Chinese culture. In
As it was, would subside a few
this issue
1996 it was again listed for sale for $12 million.
days before filming commenced as
another alarming discovery was made.
In the three weeks leading up to our

shoot, had had several conversations

I ANASAZI
with both concerned department man-
agers at Richmond City Hall and resi- An anarchist hacker delivers to Mulder a digital tape with
dents along our hero road. At no time in evidence that proves the government's knowledge of UFOs
any of these conversations had the word since the late forties. Mulder's investigation takes him to
"tidal" been uttered by anyone. Similarly, I New Mexico, and into a boxcar buried in the sand, where
had been on at least two location scouts Cigarette Smoking Man appears to kill him. Scully, in the
with department heads to this location meantime, tries to keep the FBI brass - who want to know
prior to our technical survey, and had just where Mulder is - at bay.
noticed nothing unusual. However, on the
day of our technical survey, twenty of us
arrived at the slough to find the water
RED ROCK OUARRY
level at least five feet lower than it had 4892 QUARRY RD. COQU TLAM
previously been. That meant that the
deepest part
four feet.
of the ditch was now about Xy The request for Arizona desert almost seemed laugh-
"Of course these sloughs are tidal.
able until the serious expression on executive producer

There's a sluice gate where this one and director Bob Goodwin's face suggested otherwise.
flows into the Fraser River, a couple of Desert means sand and rock, not rainforest. The scouts
miles down the road. Didn't anyone tell were dispersed to sandpits and quarries which were all
you?" This was the substance of my next active and restrictive, until recalled a derelict rock quar-
I

conversation with Richmond City Hall, as ry where the desert idea could be realized. There was one
the technical survey stood at the edge of major problem: the colour. Head painter Louis Solyom
the slough trying to figure out how to and his crew meticulously applied red paint to the quar-
remedy the situation. ry's rock walls while propped on a crane. The weather
A number of solutions were advanced co-operated while painting the quarry; however, on the
before was finally decided to "shoot with
it first day of filming, the rains descended. Filming was
the tides." A line of dialogue was added to postponed, but as time began to run out. Bob decided to
the scene insheriff's crew
which the go. That night the clouds receded and by morning there
reveal human remains to Mulder
skeletal was a brilliant sun overhead. That glorious day came to
and Scully, to the effect that "we closed be known as an "X-Files Day" and was from then on
the spillway and the water level dropped. used to describe any day when the production was
. . ."This explained away the fact that the blessed with luck.
water level was dropping significantly as
The buried train car necessitated blasting a hole in
the day progressed.
the rock to create a depression and the removal of
Which led to one final discovery.
thirty-two dumptrucks worth of boulders. The exteri
Filming lurched to a halt briefly while
director Rob Bowman waded or rock faces were sandblasted to provide a clean
into the
ditch in an attempt to herd a couple of surface for painting. Over 1 ,000 gallons of red paint
fish into deeper water. Contrary to all were required to create the Arizona desert.

80
 SEASON TWO
How to get to "Arizona"
•Follow Hwv Aceo6i>
1
2-^ /^JWiROujS ,
EA^TBouuD Au-THg uaM To EWT^^ fSIZ Quacr^ Po^t>,
• eXlT 6WTO

T«t
LEFT LAM G t Foi_l.Ouj Slt,U'b'l'oWCO(Joni*A @ EAf>T"oiJ1'IL Vou EefNCAl CoOcjITlAM
IW-foH'&gctioo of HuJS (2) * 4a1 THeW TUftxl Ili&Hr ooro Hoo^ (S)(LootHEEt>)* P^oceeiP

yiCTORiA/OuAecv RoMi CtSftoet^

i^i^OofiiiV -theaJ lair omto v^ctoe^ * proce-^d east />aow6„
"
^A * Fou-ovjj Ouftacv RD. To thC 6Pue Ri>AO
V V-. OK) Tne RlfcHT
» FOL.L0UJ SPOP. RD.To Oofle^y Ua^ATliii]

Painting the quarry required the permission of various

.* ^ •>
environmental groups and the owner of the site. The
owner was having a leisurely lunch at Swan-E-Set golf
course, which is directly across from the quarry, when his
partner remarked upon the colour of his property. Head painter Louis Solyom creating the Arizona
desert for "Anasazi" (2x25).
Shocked by what he saw, the owner called immediately
and questioned the extent of the paint job, even though
t)
reports, The X-Files discovered fish in a
he had been completely informed about the task at hand.
slough in which it was widely believed
With further assurances, the owner endorsed and later no fish could survive.
became the proud owner of the desert transformation. One other problem was actually solved
Two years you could still see the "painted
later, as a result of the tides. Special effects co-
desert" from the clubhouse lounge at Swan-E-Set ordinator Dave Gauthier expressed doubt
Golf Course in Pitt iVIeadows. — given the current in the ditch resulting
David Duchovny received a story credit for this from tidal flow — that any solution he could
episode. place in the water would remain in one
place long enough to be captured on film.
Hence we abandoned this idea although,
These are the results of the samole revived April 12. on film, the natural "sheen" on the water —
and for this we vi/ere blessed with a couple
Product Sampledi One waUr sample was raeelued In the laboratory (or analyels.
of days of flawless weather — would seem
to indicate otherwise.

X FilesProduollons: WoorViaitl Skxjgh And when that truck did narrowly miss
Tedl P«rfnmnBrt- InterMdion No t Rd. and Rnn Rd Aeril 12A>5
:

Mulder and Scully's fast-approaching

Slandan) Plate Count: i.oeo
sedan, swerving off the road and over the
Total Coniomis; 23X10"
dyke into the ditch (where it submerged
Pecel Conforms; 11X10'
up to the base of the front windshield), we
SaliTianella species: Negative
never saw anyone get out of a wreck so
Staphylococcus aureus: <1
fast as stuntman Ken Kirsinger.
Peeudomonas aeruginosa: <1

Streptococcus (aedum: 130

Whatever you do, don't swallow
("Our Town" (2x24)).

81
»<iJf»

%-

ilSSti
SEASON THREE: JULY 1995 - APRIL 1996
X Marks the Spot
THE BLESSING WAY

Scully is suspended from the FBI for not disclosing Mulder's

whereabouts. While Mulder recovers in New Mexico. Scully
discovers a computer chip implanted under the skin at the base
of her skull.

RED ROCK QUARRY

4892 QUARRY RD., COQUITLAM

1 This is a location which virtually everyone remembers.

The Red Rock Quarry evolved from the final cliffhanger
episode of Season Two. With the story set in the Sedona
area of Arizona, it was decided to shoot everything but
Paint touch-ups for "The Blessing Way" wide establishing shots here. The task of matching colour
(3x01). and aerial spraying was a once-in-a-career opportunity
for head painter Louis Solyom. it also presented an envi-
Chris (in the hat) and Rob Bowman (with the
ronmental challenge in that the paint used had to be
rolled-up sleeves) shooting in the red rock
environmentally friendly and water-soluble over time.
quarry ("Anasazi" (2x25), "The Blessing
Way" (3x01)).

PAPER CLIP

A reunited Mulder and Scully are taken to an abandoned coal

mine where they find medical records and samples of
X) nearly everyone born in the U.S. since the
tissue

fifties. Skinner uses

the digital tape (from "Anasazi") to bargain for Mulder and
Scully's jobs (and safety).

MINE
BRITANNIA MUSEUM OF MINING,
BRITANNIA BEACH

During the production of "Anasazi" (2x25), while filming

the Arizona tract housing, Chris toured the adjacent
abandoned copper mine. Within a few months, an
episode was written for the mine location, but with a
few additions. The mine tunnel was to house hundreds
of thousands of filing cabinets; CGI would take care of
the thousands, but the art department had to create the
hundreds. Construction installed the cabinets (most of
them had false fronts) while set dec gathered and
attached the brass hardware to the fronts. The first of
The Cigarette Smoking Man arrives ("Anasazi"
(2x25). "The Blessing Way" (3x01)).
three days of shooting at the mine was scheduled in the
tunnel, and on the following day construction was given
approval to wrap the filing cabinet fagades. However, it

CGI: computer generated imaging. was noon before first assistant director and Lone Gunman
Tom Braidwood - having arrived home at 5 a.m. - sur-
faced from slumber and alerted the office about an

84
 SEASON TH REE
uncompleted tunnel scene. Construction co-ordinator
Rob Maier, quick on the draw, stopped his boys from
wrapping, and the set was reassembled and salvaged for

the impending night of shooting. The search for someone

to blame for the foul up became imminent.
A corrugated metal facade was constructed beside the
main shaft so Mulder could look up and view the ascend-
ing flying saucer at night. A musco light crane with nine
4K HMIs - essential to create the overall lighting effect -

was brought in from L.A. and special effects developed a

special truss for mounting lights. Best Boy Bill Kassis
was delegated the job of building the UFO lighting effect
which would engulf the mine. Working from a design
based on Chris Carter's vision and gaffer Dave Tickell's Disassenibling the lighting truss to travel to
technical requirements, Kassis later recalled that this was Britannia Mine to shoot "Paper Clip" (3x02).
the single biggest lighting effect he'd ever been involved
in creating.
Using an eighty-foot truss suspended from a 200-foot-
high construction crane, Kassis spent a week on the
The mine was closed to the public
North Shore Studios lot configuring and reconfiguring a
for seven days to accommodate
variety of lights in an attempt to generate the maximum filming.
amount of light given the weight restrictions of both truss
and crane. After "flying" the rigged truss for Chris and
others - and making adjustments as requested - and

getting a final thumbs-up, the truss was derigged, disas-

sembled, transported to the mine, then mounted on a
crane to ultimately create the illusion of a flying saucer
rising overhead. The mine interior glowed while the
D
musco light, not required after all, was relegated to light-
ing the catering truck, providing one of themost well-lit
meals we ever had on the show.
In total, the rigged truss produced more than 100,000

watts of light for the effect. The intensity was such that a
vehicle advisory warning was issued for those driving
along the Squamish Highway.

DINER
TEA SHOPPE, BRITANNIA BEACH
Rigging the lights.

While the 99er Diner was the original choice for the
diner,once the magnitude of filming at the mine site
became apparent, an alternative location had to be found,
largely to avoid the time it would have taken to move the
work trucks the two hundred yards to the 99er. At this
point, the 99er had already posted notices for closure on
the specified filming day. As a result, compensation for
inconvenience and potential loss of business was provid-

85
X Marks the Spot
ed. This incident certainly didn't stop the crew from eat-
ing there. The wooden and walkway that construc-
trellis

tion built to lead to the Tea Shoppe remained part of the

fagade treatment.

ORCHID HOT HOUSE

SOUTHLANDS NURSERY,
6550 BALACLAVA ST., VANCOUVER

The script called for an orchid nursery. Director Rob

Bowman and the producers agreed that the main
retail/gardening building at Southlands met the script
requirements. On the day of the technical survey - with
only two days of prep remaining - Chris inquired about
an alternative to the main complex at Southlands.
Everyone listened while Chris explained that the structure
should be more intimate. asked florist Thomas Hobbs to
I

tour us through other facilities. We walked through a

simple and very typical dome-shaped fiberglass hot-
house, which Chris consented to. The department heads
worked feverishly to organize what would be a hasty
prep. Set decorator Shirley inget pounced on Hobbs for
assistance, as it was apparent that all the bedding plants
in the hothouse had to be relocated and replaced with

t row upon row of orchids. Fortunately, we were filming

a nursery and had access to all the plants we needed.
at

D.P.O.

A trouble-making teenager who can summon lightning takes

his schoolteacher crush too far.

Director Kim Manners and steady-cam

operator Marty Mclnally in full flight. OSWALD HOUSE/PASTURE
JACKSON HOMESTEAD,
24554-102 AVE., ALBION

"Find me an old farmhouse and a pasture where can I

nuke these cows." This was roughly the sentiment

expressed by director Kim Manners with regard to the
location which would play as Darin's house in Connerville,
Oklahoma.
Several good options in Delta and South Surrey came to
mind, but Manners was not yet done. "And this pasture
. . . needs to have some sort of a rolling hill or gully in it

... to help me reveal Darin in a low-angle shot when he

turns into a human lightning rod." He made his trade-
mark "V" with his index and middle fingers to illustrate
the direction of the camera. So much for pancake-flat
Delta and South Surrey.
86
 SEASON THREE
recalled only one location matching this requirement.
I

The good news was that it was owned by an old gentle-

man who, in the past, had been very accommodating to
film companies. The bad news was that this turn-of-the-
century farmhouse was way out of the studio zone and
would therefore not be an accountant's first choice.
Given the politics and hierarchy of the show, grappled I

with posing the suggestion, knowing that it would be a

popular creative choice but murder from a budget per-
spective. Fortunately, Manners unwittingly solved the
dilemma for me. He seemed to "recall an old farmhouse
with rolling fields" from some show he'd done years pre-
viously. He remembered it being "way out there hell and
gone but a great location." Could he see some photos?
Which is how we ended up in Albion at 94-year-old
Vin lackson's place. Mr. lackson - who has since passed
away - helped settle the area and build the first roads.
His farmhouse was a set decorator's dream, complete
with original linoleum and fixtures. The decor appeared
as though it hadn't changed in sixty years.
Mr. Jackson enjoyed a good yarn and if you happened
to arrive at breakfast time, you could always be assured
of a place-setting. In the past, he had entertained movie
shoots such as Jennifer 8 and lumanji, and seemed both
puzzled and amused by the time and effort production
companies devoted to recreating reality.
When asked him if we could use his small herd of
I )D Louisa held the location department record for
cattle as background action in the pasture on the day of
the most expensive monthly cellular phone bill:
filming - for which had been instructed to offer him
1

over $1,200. Todd preferred the land line.

$5-$ 10 per cow - he laughed and shook his head as if to
say "Don't worry about the money," adding, "Sure, why
Field of Tulips
not - they're there anyway."
Production designer Graeme Murray
requested real flowers to create the field
CLYDE BRUCKMAN'S
FINAL REPOSE of tulips on which Clyde lies ("Clyde
Bruckman's Final Repose" (3x04)).
A reluctant psychic who can foresee people's deaths helps
Two days before filming, over 200 tulips
Scully and Mulder track a serial murderer who is killing the
were imported from Holland, only to be
psychics of St. Paul.
rejected on aesthetic grounds because
they looked too "real." This ordeal only
STREET/CONVENIENCE AND LIQUOR STORE cost $250, but the real costs had yet to
surface.
3500-BLOCK COMMERCIAL ST AND
The greens department ended up sta-
ERNIE'S GROCERY, 3599 COMMERCIAL ST, VANCOUVER
pling 450 silk tulips onto a large elevated
platform built by the construction depart-
This street - a hidden gem for filming - is composed of
ment. Filming the scene took two seven-
a mix of unimposing residential and commercial build-
teen hour days because each time actor
ings. This film experience was essentially a neighbour-
Peter Boyle moved out of the tulip bed,
hood party. The police officers closed down the street for
he altered the original arrangement, and
the exterior scenes and the locals milled around set to
the silk tulips had to be meticulously
satisfy their curiosity. Clyde Bruckman, our hero, spent
repositioned for the next take.
the day in fictional torment wandering the street, in

87
X Marks the Spot
search of his curse at the convenience store and at an
Body Double artist's studio on the block which was decorated as both
the Tarot Dealership and Palm Reader Shop.
During the technical survey for
"2Shy" (3x06), clutching our coffees as
TWo Emmys were collected in 1996 for this episode:

we made our way back to the van, I

writer Darin Morgan won for Writing and Peter Boyle
saw David Duchovny's identical twin won Guest Actor in a Drama Series
for for his

crossing the street. I pointed him out to performance as the title character.
the team, noting that even his walk was
similar to David's. Director David Nutter
asked driver Ken Marsden to give
chase. We sped across the street, THE LIST
stopped abruptly, and, in a fury. Nutter,
Tom Braidwood, and leaped out of the
I
An executed murderer returns from the dead to seek revenge by

van to chase the Duchovny look-alike. killing five people.

When we caught up to him, the young

man backed away - he later told us he
thought we were trying to sell him
stolen stereos. But we insisted he take
2SHY
one of our X-Files business cards. He
In Cleveland, a man's genetic mutation requires that he
looked it over and then offered his
consume the fat of other people in order to survive.
phone number. Within a couple of
months, Steve Kiziak's electrician
apprenticeship was over. He had
become David Duchovny's number one VIRGIL'S APARTMENT/ELLEN'S CONDO
photo double. When the show moved
QUEBEC
to L.A., so did Steve. He even made a
guest appearance on Jay Leno's
Tonight Sliow in February 1 999.
V 2500-2600-BLOCK,
VANCOUVER
ST.

With these locations only a block apart, Virgil's apart-

ment and Ellen's condo were filmed on the same night.

While David and Gillian were filming in the alley at the

rear, their doubles were being filmed entering from the

front. Appropriate arrangements had been made with the

respective owners for this brief scene and after director
David Nutter staged the scene, second assistant director
Collin Leadlay and the doubles got to work.

Steve Kiziak, David's new double, started his new

job at this location. When asked about his fondest
memory he recalled coming face to face with his
mirror image for the first time.
In the episode, Scully and Mulder are seen from the
street bursting through the front door, in reality, it was
the doubles doing the bursting. After five takes, the shot
was complete, and the crew moved on. The next day a
woman wanting to know why her dinner party
called,
had been interrupted. As it turned out, the doubles had
been directed to barge through the wrong door.
As Ellen's condo was being illuminated by condors and
David Duchovny's photo double Steve Kiziak.
an I8K, another condor lit up the adjoining block to
establish the exterior of Virgil's apartment at night. The
bright lights were visible more than twenty blocks away.

88
 SEASON THREE
THE WALK

Scully and Mulder investigate a series of killings at a veterans

hospital, where a multiple amputee Gulf War vet uses astral The scenes in the swimming pool
projection to taking revenge on his former superiors. and locker room were filmed at the
pool facility next door. We had been
looking for a pool without all the
INTERROGATION ROOM/HALLWAY/DETENTION CENTRE/ROACH'S CELL lines and markings associated with
BLAKE HALL, JUSTICE INSTITUTE OF B.C., a public recreational facility.
4180 WEST 4TH AVE., VANCOUVER Similarly, these day scenes would
be better served if the facility had
With one notable exception - the Callahan House at windows through \A/hich supple-
3638 Osier Street - this episode was written around mental lighting could be added.
psychiatric hospitals, jails, and a swimming pool. And while Both conditions were ideally served
old standby Riverview Hospital may have seemed like the by this location.
logical choice to accommodate most of the sixteen-odd
sets required for this episode, production (and locations)
was now in the position of respecting David's fervent
desire that he not be put in a position to visit the Riverview
site again for a very long time, the distance (a forty-minute
drive from his home) being the primary reason.
The task of finding locations closer to Vancouver to
satisfy this new edict therefore became a priority for the The Justice Institute's catering

locations department. Several sets for were already being

building was used as the site of the
built and dressed at the jean Matheson Pavilion on the Chaco chicken plant in "Our Town"
(2x24). The large industrial kitchen
B.C. Children's Hospital site (psych ward isolation room,
hallway, elevator and stairwell) and in the Old Nurses X) was stripped of much of its defining
hardware and our own set dressing
Residence at Vancouver General Hospital (Callahan's office,
brought in to create the look of a
observation room and hallway).
processing plant without the smell.
The former site of the justice institute of British
Columbia had been vacated in the summer of 1995 as the
Institute moved to its new facility in New Westminster.
What remained - the gym and pool facility, the adminis-
trative and catering buildings, and a school - had just
come under the new ownership of the West Point Grey
Community Centre, located a few blocks away at
Aberthau Manor.
We looked at Blake Hall - the former administrative
building - as a location for the long hallway scenes lead-
ing to the interrogation room, detention centre, and Roach's One big lab at the lustice Institute.

%m

89
X Marks the Spot
which would be demolished with-
cdlblock. This building,

Money-Back Guarantee ctp) in sixmonths, gave us the latitude to paint and build
without concern for costs associated with restoration.
In the location managing end of this
The hallway walls were soft yellow tile and the floors
business, it is not customary for an
had been carpeted throughout, hiding the lovely masonry.
individual or a business to actually offer
monies (damage and security
A sub-contractor was hired to remove both carpet and
to return
deposits excepted) to the production
adhesive residue, which was considerable and extremely
company. Quite the opposite is usually stubborn. It's no exaggeration to say that they worked

However, rare exceptions do exist.

true. day and night - experimenting with different chemical
The list of locations required for "Nisei" agents - in an attempt to remove every trace of the black
(3x09) was
not lengthy by X-Files stan- goo which had been used to firmly affix carpet to floor.
dards (eight locations over eight days), An industrial cleaning company followed closely, bring-
but it was somewhat eclectic and includ- ing the stone floors and tiled walls to the desired reflec-
ed a small ship (of the 100-foot-plus tive sheen. By the time The X-Files returned to this site in

variety), a dock facility aX which to berth February 1996 to film scenes for "Pusher" (3x17) in the
this ship, a railyard and train station, a recently-vacated McDonald Building (FBI firing range and
Coast Guard headquarters (view of the hearing room/hallway), all that remained of Blake Hall was
water preferred), a harbourmaster's a gravel parking lot and a vast expanse of lawn.
office (view of a very large ship loading/
unloading preferred), a police station
OUBLIETTE
parking an embassy, and two houses
lot,

(one an "eyesore," the other a modest

A kidnap survivor simultaneously manifests the experiences of
fifties-style bungalow).
her abductor's latest victim. Mulder uses her as a road map,
The modest house {Betsy Hagopian's
Scully thinks she is an accomplice.
house in the script) was found on Grand
Boulevard in North Vancouver, owner-
WADE'S HOUSE
occupied by a very friendly senior citi-
zen. Great care was taken to explain to
t) MOUNT SEYMOUR LODGE.
Mrs. M. exactly what was required of her SEYMOUR MOUNTAIN
property and what this would mean to
her. A full dress was required, which The script called for a house in the middle of nowhere,
meant that she was given the option of a but the notion of "remote" to some producers often means
hotel or a couple of nights with relatives. somewhere close to the studio. Even though the Lower
She decided to stay with relatives. We Mainland appears to offer remote dwellings, fields, and
came, we filmed, we left. roads, there are very few isolated houses easily accessible
Three months later called Mrs. M. I to to a film unit. When needing to accommodate 1,500 linear
inform her that the episode was to air the feet of work trucks and sixty crew cars, "remote" suggests
following weekend, thinking that she areas that could appear rustic while being next to a parking
might get a kick out of seeing her house lot.
on network television. She thanked me This remote dwelling was in reality a log house situated
and then asked if was alright to cash
it
near a parking lot at the top of Seymour Mountain. The ski
the cheque. drew a temporary blank.
I
lift, however, was a visual impediment to the setting. Frank
"What cheque would that be?" asked. I

Haddad and his team were instructed to conceal the lift

"The cheque you gave me for filming at
with a bank of trees. Hundreds of trees. On a Friday after-
my house," she replied. "I've been carry-
noon, during the Tech Survey, the schedule was changed
ing around in my purse ever since." The
it
and access to the Mountain on the following Monday for
cheque, incidentally, was worth about
three days of intensive prep was required. Greens estimated
$3,000. "Of course you can cash it. It's
a minimum five-day prep for their department.
your money. The show's about to be on
The contract with Provincial Parks had not yet been
television." To \A^hich she sweetly added,
approved and Parks requires one week notice prior to any
"I just wanted to make sure that every-

film activity whether it be prep, shoot, or wrap. Cellular

90
 SEASON TH REE
phones are godsends. When we finally reached the Parks
representative, we were promised that the utmost effort thing was okay and that you were
would be expended to approve the request on Monday so happy with everything and that you
prep could begin, but were warned not to begin prep didn't need to do reshoots."

without a signed contract. While waiting for the decision The story does not end here. Flash
and realizing the magnitude of greens work, Frank began forward two years and three months to
to secretly haul truckloads of trees up the mountain. Little "Memento Mori" (4x15). Scully is again
did we know that the Parks officials could see the trucks required to visit the MUFON (mutual
roaring past their office. When the trucks reached the UFO of abductees) house. By
network
summit, feeling rather smug about the clandestine activi- then, Mrs. M. was an old pro at location
filming. She was also eager to be of
ty, the Parks representative called and yelled, "Stop that
assistance. The necessary arrange-
truck." We were caught. By noon, approval to begin prep
ments were made and her house was
was given and the truckloads resumed.
again committed to celluloid.
To create the appearance of seclusion, 350 trees
Several weeks later I received a letter
were brought in to dress the set.
at the production office. The return
address listed Mrs. M. as the sender.
I opened the envelope to find a brief
RIVERBANK hand-written note and a cheque
SEYMOUR RIVERBANK, SQUAMISH NATION equalling the amount agreed upon as
PROPERTY, 320 SEYMOUR BLVD., NORTH VANCOUVER reimbursement for hotel expenses.
Mrs. M. explained in the note that, since
This episode prompted a survey of all the local rivers in
the prep crew left her bedroom Intact,
wilderness settings. Capilano River and Lynn Headwaters
she returned home the night before
were too shallow and ultimately the Seymour River near
filming and sweet-talked our security
Twin Bridges was selected because the high water table
guard into allowing her inside because
offered "jeopardy," but was safe for actors. The location
was scheduled for the eighth day of shooting. Then the 50 she wanted to sleep in her own bed.
She therefore felt only right it that the
rains came.
money should be returned to us. And
On day six, Kelly Mortensen, the Greater Vancouver that is a rare occurence indeed.
Regional District representative, informed us that the
Seymour River had risen a foot and was rising still. It March 19, 1998 N

became evident that all of the rivers were too high and Dear Resident:

dangerous for the scene. Director Kim Manners demand- On Wednesday. March 25. Thursday, March 26 and Friday, March 27, X-F Productions
Inc- of North Vancouver will be filming scenes for an episode of "The X-Files" at .522
ed a new location, and the portion of the Seymour River East 12th Street

near its mouth proved to be, at least on the Friday, the Tliis dramatic senes deals with paranormal events and unexplamed phenomena within the
realm of extreme possibility.
shallowest body of water to be found locally. The scene
Filming will take place between the hours of 7am and 5pm
was scheduled for filming on the following Monday. Frank only, between 8;30am and 1 1pm on Thursday, and between 9am and
approximately on Wednesday
12 midnight on

spent his weekend hauling truckloads of trees to camou- Friday Wednesday's work will uivoive interior filming only, while Thursday and Fnday's
work will involve interior filming during the day and exterior filming on both nights.
flage the houses opposite the chosen riverbank. Locations
Parking restrictions will be as follows:
spent the weekend one step ahead of Frank, getting 1) Wednesday only (7am and 5pm)
- north/south sides of East 12th from Moody Ave to Grand Btvd
approval from home owners to place trees on their prop- - east side of Moody from East 1 2th to East 1 3th Streets
-east side of Grand Blvd from East lllhtoEast I3di Street
erties. By Monday morning the river was ten inches - north side of East 1 1th Ave. between Grand Btvd east and west

higher, but despite the persistent deluge, a persistent 2) Thursday (7am) to Saturday (Sam)
- east side of Grand Blvd. between 1 1th and 13di Streets
Kim Manners kept filming. By noon the entire crew was - north side of East 1th Street between Grand Blvd cast and west
1

Grand Blvd and Moody Ave.

water-logged and Kim's director's chair, originally posi- - north/south sides of East 12th between
- east side of Moody Ave between East lllh and East I3lh Streets

tioned on a gravel bed on the bank, rested in a foot of

On all dlese days, crew vehicles w\\\ park in the parking lot at Moody and East 13dl
water. When asked about the day he merely responded, Street

"It couldn't be fucking worse." Please expect a complete closutx: of the 500 block of East 12th Ave. on Thursday and
Friday (local traffic exempted) between the hours of 1pm and 1 Ipm respectively.

The greens department used more than 1,000 trees

Please note diat on Thursday and Friday nights, we will be using lighting cranes and
to hide the houses along the riverbank. hglitning machmes The hglitnmg machines are yen bnght Please do not stare directly at
.the flashes, as this could cause temporary altered vision V

91
X Marks the Spot
NISEI

Chicken ctp)
A suspiciously realistic alien autopsy videotape puts Mulder on
The onset of Season Three saw the the trail of a salvaged alien spacecraft, a group of Japanese
creation of an official Second Unit doctors who are experimenting on alien life-forms, and a
crew, \A/hose responsibility would be
it mysterious train on which the experiments take place.
to shoot all inserts, time-consuming
stuntwork, and special effects shots not
involving principal cast, and additional COAST GUARD HQ/HARBOU RM ASTER'S OFFICE
footage or reshoots as required by the BALLANTYNE PIER. VANCOUVER
producers, director, or editors.
Very quickly. Second Unit also took
responsibility for episode teasers as Neither the Canadian Coast Guard nor the Vancouver
well as work involving both principal Port Authority officescommanded the kind of views of the
cast members. Expectations grew with harbour required by us for this episode. Not only did
each new episode. A scene would be director David Nutter want ships and harbour in the
reshot until was deemed good
it
background, but he wanted them as close as possible.
enough. If an episode was found to be facility was chosen
Ballantyne Pier and cruise ship
lacking, additional scenes were added because it was, on the water and because there
literally,
to bring up to snuff.
it
was vacant space in which to create our own offices.
This created a number of scheduling
The companionway on the east side of the facility (with
problems when trying to accommodate
a panoramic view to the northeast) was chosen to house
Second Unit work within the Main Unit
the Harbourmaster's office set, while the opposite compan-
schedule, particularly when David and
ionway west (with a view to the northwest) would
to the
Gillian were needed for both shoots.
serve as the hallway leading to Coast Guard HClm which
For the locations department, it meant
the walk-and-talk was staged.
being in a continual state of readiness
to accommodate, as Second Unit
t> Shipping companies offer no guarantees when it comes
to scheduling, but with the help of the management at
schedules and demands were often not
decided until two or three days before
neighbouring Casco Terminals, we best-guessed a sched-
uled arrival and plugged that day into our shooting
prospective shoot dates.
schedule. As luck - and the weather at sea - would have
Robert Murdoch was hired as the
Second Unit assistant location manag- it, we were fortunate enough to have a large freighter

er, the theory being that Louisa and I

off-loading within fifty feet of our set.

would organize and negotiate the

location requirements for Second Unit
while Murdoch took care of the nuts [DWARDS TERMINAL, QUEENSGATE. OHIO
and bolts (parking, maps, resident noti- BC RAIL STATION,
fication, etc.) and provided a physical NORTH VANCOUVER
presence on set. As many of the loca-
This episode and "731" (3x10) are known in X-Files
tions required by Second Unit were
mythology as the "train shows." Not only did we com-
repeat locations used by Main Unit
mandeer a passenger train and travel up coast with it,
(hence they'd already been scouted
but we purchased an old daycar and blew it up in a
and deals negotiated), was not felt it

that a Second Unit location manager

spectacular explosion on a siding at Porteau Cove, B.C.

position was justifiable. Experience The gutted wreck was subsequently returned to BC Rail
would subsequently prove this to be a for scrap.

half-truth at best as episodes bal- All this required a huge plan to circumvent logistical
looned in size and degree of difficulty, problems, among them the weather and existing train

with Second Unit often cleaning up schedules using the same set of track. Our rail terminal
was actually the departure point for all trains heading

north on this line. These scenes were filmed between

92
 SEASON TH REE
morning passenger departures and late afternoon
arrivals, with some surprised looks from terminal staff
and travellers.
work from two — and sometimes three —
Scenes involving the arrival of the scientists, Mulder's
previous shows simultaneously. This
surveillance from the roof of the locomotive shed, and the
provided Rob with many challenges,
departure of "731 " on its clandestine journey were filmed
many headaches, and a measure of
in the adjoining railyard.
responsibility which sometimes exceed-
ed both his title and job description.
A scene in "Nisei" (3x09) required a
location to play as the Japanese
Embassy in Washington, D.C. A quick
internet search confirmed that Embassy
Row in D.C. consisted of several old
mansions and estates converted into
diplomat headquarters. Conversely, the
The Budd car explodes Japanese Embassy in Vancouver was
("731" (3x10)). housed in a very modern black glass
and tile highrise in the do\A/ntown core,
austere and visually uninteresting. The
University Women's Club of Vancouver
ALICE STREET OVERPASS at Hycroft in Shaughnessy would be our
26THST. AND BELLEVUE, replacement. Given our research, it

WEST VANCOUVER seemed like the logical choice.

Built in an Italianate villa style, the
words came up during a preliminary script discus-
Five house comprises 15,000 square feet on
sion which carried both a sense of excitement and fore- three floors and includes a ballroom,
boding: Mulder . . . jumps . . . onto . . . moving train. Fine. X) lounge, and wine cellar on the ground
An old wooden pedestrian overpass did exist on the rail level floor. Hycroft originally sat on a
line we would be using with "our" train, but questions of 5.2-acre parcel of land which included a
safety and liability required a quick redress. stable, greenhouses, tennis courts, and
Similarly, its location in West Vancouver was a factor, a tiled swimming pool. All but the pool
as many residents of this lovely enclave would just as were eventually demolished and the
soon raise the drawbridge as let a film company into their property subdivided, leaving two acres
neighbourhood. A structural engineer examined the over- of grounds around the house.

pass and gave us the green light, at which point some With its grand Edwardian architecture,
municipal goodwill (were they fans?) kicked in, granting Italian tiled roof, and ornate Grecian

all but one of our requests, which involved night filming Corinthian columned entrances, very
after 5 p.m. little set dressing was needed. A
A piece of the overpass was recreated on the lot at Japanese flag was hung, greens and
North Shore Studios to accommodate low angle shots of vines were added to the pillars, and

David moments before his decision to jump onto the roof white parking lines were temporarily
removed. As this scene was written for
of the moving train, a cleverly-executed stunt staged
almost entirely on location with both actor and stuntman.
night, calltime was set for 4 p.m. Filming
at Hycroft has always been more about
A West Vancouver by-law restricts filming and the getting worktrucks, equipment, and per-
moving of trucks and trailers to between the hours of sonnel in and out of this very sensitive
7 a.m. and 5 p.m. No night filming or extensions are neighbourhood by 1 1 p.m. than about
allowed unless approved by city council. On the day the craft of movie-making. Add to this
of filming I arrived just before 7 a.m. to find a noisy the logistics of lighting a night exterior in
construction company at work on a residential site which a lighting crane had to be parked
no more than 200 yards from set.

93
X Marks the Spot

DRYDOCK/TALAPUS
out on the street, and both Rob and PIER 94/VANCOUVER SHIPYARDS.
director Kim Manners had their work NORTH VANCOUVER
cut out for them. After all, a neighbour
(and long time film industry NIMBY) Here's a classic example of creative geography. Mulder
would be watching and waiting, his leaves the Coast Guard HQ^at Ballantyne Pier on the
hand on the City Hall hotline. Vancouver side of the harbour, disappearing amidst a sea
At about 9 p.m. Rob called from set. Moments later, he emerges in a North
of containers.
He was worried. The overhead crane Vancouver shipyard and ascends three storeys onto a
shot of the Japanese diplomat being submersible drydock facility, where he spots our hero
garroted in the back seat of the limo- scow - the Talapus - moored nearby.
sinewas taking forever to set up and As serendipity would have it, the ship (it really was called
he was concerned that Kim would not the Talapus) was located - already berthed - at Pier 94 in
finish shooting in time to be loaded up North Vancouver. Pier 94 is adjacent to Vancouver Shipyards'
and gone by 1 1 p.m. massive floating drydock, which was subsequently written into
Kim, a veteran director with a lot of
the script and added to the location list as an afterthought
prior production experience in
because was was
a) it there, b) it visually very cool, and c)
Vancouver, was well aware of the situa-
the operators were enthusiastic to play host to the show.
tion and trying hard to wrap things up.
David's photo double Steve Kiziak split the on-camera
Unfortunately, problems with the Swiss
duties with David in traversing the overhead catwalk,
Jib and reflections in the limosine sun-
which had an unnerving habit of swinging in the wind
roof had slowed the pace and there
and bouncing uncontrollably under the weight of scurry-
were only so many shortcuts he could
ing footsteps.
take. urged Rob to remind Kim of the
I

deadline and call me with an update at

731
9:45 p.m.
When my phone rang again, the des- 50 In one of the secret railcars Mulder discovers that the experi-
peration in Rob's voice told the story. ments are on alien-human hybrids while Scully, at a West
We would, he reported, be lucky to be Virginia research centre, discovers open graves filled with
finished filming by 10:30 p.m., an unac- hybrid bodies.
ceptable scenario. "Well, if that's the
case," I began, "I hope you're ready to TRAIN EXPLOSION
pull the plug. You are my representative
on set and Kim knows the
PORTEAU COVE, SQUAMISH HWY.
drill. I'm not
about to burn this location. That just
won't happen." There was a long pause The alien's transcontinental rail trip essentially covered
on the other end of the line. thirty kilometres of BC Rail's line with one stop at the
overpass in West Vancouver, terminating with an explo-
sive finale at Porteau Cove. Film schedules had to be tight
and shots had to be confirmed. With regular trains travel-
ling the single track line, there was no time to spare. The
actual explosion necessitated co-ordination with the rail-

way and Squamish Highway officials. Traffic along the

highway was closed during each attempt to explode the
rail car.

Special effects needed ten days to prep the railcar

and three days to pack it with explosives. After the
set went hot, a seaplane buzzed the set at an altitude
A remote control camera on a Swiss lib.
of only 200 feet. As the explosives were to be deto-
nated by radio control, the seaplane and its instru-
ments jeopardized the entire crew.

94
 SEASON THREE

"Pull the plug on Kim. .

." Rob's voice
trailed off. "Yes," I replied. "I did it to
=V*^ Wes Craven once. It wasn't very pleas-
This Budd's for you: (l-r)
ant,and almost got fired. But was
I I

BC Rails Mike Zaiecki,

right,and knew And what's more
I it.
Brett Dowler, Rob
important, he knew it." Somehow Rob
Bowman, and a special
effects crew member prep
seemed less than convinced by my
the explosion for "731
example.
(3x10). The toe-to-toe which ensued was, by
all accounts, one for the books. Rob
began by standing next toKim and
looking pensively at his watch in an
attempt to get his attention. "Sir," Rob
began, "I'm afraid we're going to have
towrap things up. We're out of time."
Kim seemed to ignore the suggestion.
"Kim," Rob repeated, every inch the
gentleman, "I'm going to have to pull
the plug." To which Kim wheeled
The train explosion ^^^$11^- around to face Rob and, poking him in

for "731" (3x10).

^ the chest with his finger, launched into
a tirade. "Wait a minute," Kim began.
"You're shutting me down you . . . . . .
As a continuation of "Nisei" (3x09), this episode
you're shutting me down?"
required a separate track along the train line to rig and
"At that point," Rob later recalled, "all
explode the other words, an inactive line where
train. In
special effects could rig explosives, and the actual explo-
t) the crew slowly began to back up
around us. As Kim became more agi-
sion wouldn't impede or impair regular rail schedules,
tated, that lovely midwestern drawl of
in order to find the ultimate location, art director Greg
his became more pronounced, too."
Loewen and 1 scouted the entire rail lineby Hi-Railer - a "You're . . . you're shutting me down,"
jeep fitted with rail grabs to drive on either the rail track Kim continued. "Let me get this straight.
or off-road. The $1,000 trip afforded us a spectacular You're shutting me . . . down." To which
view ocean and the thrill of riding above the
of the Rob replied, "Yes, that is
sculpted canyons of Garibaldi Pass. Off-road excursions correct."
for breakfast and lunch enabled us to scout some of the The exchange went on for some min
finer culinary delights enroute. utes before Kim calmed down and real-
At the beginning of prep, a great deal of time, energy, ized that Rob was only doing his job
and creative talent was devoted to the aesthetic of the which, at this time of the night, meant
alien's railcar (a BC23-Budd car) and its position in the protecting both the location and the
line of railcars. After lengthy discussions, the alien car neighbourhood. Miraculously, the
was placed at the end of the train. Several weeks of prep Second Unit crew wrapped at 10:05
later, we learned that a Budd car cannot safely leave the p.m. and were gone by 1 1 p.m.
station at the end of a train. The alien car was then des- No complaints.
ignated second to the end. The picture locomotive. For two seasons, Kim had exhibited
Engine 756, was painted with removable stripping for the a predlllctlon for a certain fast-food
lineup and the roofs of all were painted with
of the cars fried chicken. He occasionally treated

non-skid paint to ensure David's safety when he jumped his Second Unit crew to a few buckets
onto the moving train.
at wrap, this night being no exception.

Gusts of wind off the ocean peaked at 50 kilometres

per hour while filming at this location.

95
X Marks the Spot

REVELATIONS

Scully questions her own faith while she protects a boy who
exhibits stigmata, and who is being pursued by a serial killer.

WAR OF THE COPROPHAGES

Roaches appear to be overrunning a Massachusetts town.

INTERIOR METHANE PLANT

Second Unit assistant location manager

CRANE CANADA, 225 NORTH RD.
COQUITLAM
Robert Murdoch.

No matter how subtly the subject of cockroaches is

introduced, there are no warm welcomes. I explained to

the producers that at most practical locations, the idea of
Fans often surrounded the set
having German cockroaches infiltrate private homes and
hoping autographs. Production
for
assistant Woody Morrison recalled
businesses would not be entertained. Imagine the ramifi-
that during the filming of "War of cations if some of the insects ventured off set. it was
the Coprophages," a young fan expected, however, that the question be posed at the
waited all night hoping to catch a location of the interior methane plant. To deal with the
glimpse of David. As David was issue tactfully and expediently, it was broached with the
heading to set at 7 a.m., he manager while discussing the massive paint job required
stopped by to say hello, sign an
While the manager was con-
to effectively portray a lab.
autograph, and get his picture
taken with the awestruck girl.
t and remarked,
sidering the paint issue, he turned to us
"Cockroaches skirting around here would be fun." There
was complete silence from the survey team. Painting and
filming took place at this location without a single cock-
roach escapee.
The Canada building was not
exterior of the Crane
Producer J. P. Finn knew the enough for our exterior filming needs,
visually interesting
property manager of the location to so another nearby warehouse was selected. It had
be used methane plant
for the numerous windows and glass loading bay doors through
exterior. Although we anticipated no which tons of debris could escape after the explosion of
problems negotiating a satisfactory the methane plant. To minimize the damage associated
arrangement, the manager insisted
with the explosion, special effects sealed the office. Too
on an exorbitant fee. Unfortunately,
well. When the explosion occurred, the office imploded.
J. P. was unable to reduce the fee,
Entire walls ballooned out into the corridors although
and we had run out of time and
staying intact. Special effects spent several days cleaning
options. Sometimes "who you
up the mess, and construction added an entire build to
know" doesn't help.
theirlist of things to do for this episode.

MINIMART
PETRO CANADA, 489 NORTH DOLLARTON HWY.
NORTH VANCOUVER
Six German cockroaches escaped
the sets at North Shore Studios. This location was scheduled for a Friday night shoot
and in expectation of a late night, the neighbouring resi-

dences were petitioned for permission to shoot until 2

96
 SEASON TH REE
a.m. Saturday. The Dollarton Mall businesses were also
work
petitioned for the use of nineteen parking stalls for
truck parking behind the location. The mini mart location
was chosen for its small town setting and convenience Sifted Evidence ctp)
store/gas station combination. The scene depicts Scully
The West Coast rains were not the
arriving at the pumps, only to be hemmed in by frantic
only culprit to wreak havoc on produc-
locals who are buying everything in the store. It was
tion. During the filming of scenes for
expected that this scene would take the crew well into the
"Syzygy" (3x13) at the Boundary Bay
night, but due to inclement weather, and a growing intol-
winds blew a large
Airport, strong
erance of the rain, director Kim Manners called an early
propane heater into the wall of our 20'
wrap. X 20' extras holding tent, causing the
tent to catch fire and melt within min-
utes. Fortunately, extras were on set
XTERIOR HOSPITAL all

during the accident, but many had left

CLAIRMONT CAMERA, NORTH SHORE STUDIOS, changes of clothing and personals in
NORTH VANCOUVER
the tent. I later received a lengthy list of
damaged or destroyed items from
When Lions Gate Studios was developed, hideous false
extras casting, and \was both shocked
storefront facades were some of the
built in front of
and amused number of
to note the
stages.These storefronts gave a new definition to "fake,"
expensive designer suits, handbags,
and are only used when desperate. Really desperate.
Italian shoes, and custom eyewear
The Clairmont building, adorned with mirrored glass, which had gone up in flames. Given
could conceivably be found in the "real" world, and as an that the scenes we were filming
exterior location close to our stages, it suitably depicted a involved a crowd of townsfolk from a
modern small-town hospital. small rural community and that this
was a night shoot, I was further puz-

SYZYGY
3D zled. asked that the claimants bring in
I

the charred remains of their belongings

for verification pending replacement.
A strange planetary alignment sends everything out of wack.
Virtually nothing materialized at the
Everything's off-kilter including Mulder, who is guzzling vodka, production office.
and Scully, who is chain-smoking on cigarettes.

CLEARING IN WOODS/CLIFF
OLD CYPRESS MOUNTAIN QUARRY,
CYPRESS MOUNTAIN, WEST VANCOUVER "SYZYGY" refers to a rare plane-
tary alignment that creates a

The teaser for this episode called for a clearing around "grand square."

a face where police discover the body of a teenage

cliff

boy dangling from above. This type of location is always

problematic when it comes to access for equipment and
crew. Safety issues were also a big concern; natural loca-
tions are almost always dangerous or inaccessible. The
Burning a location: actions by a
desert quarry used in episodes 2x04 and 3x01 was ruled
production that lead to complaints
out as it was still red.
severe enough that a location is
The discovery of this location came about as the recol-
immediately placed on the hot list.
lection of a crew member who seemed to recall "a cliff
and a bunch of boulders" from some other show he'd
worked on. He thought it was "somewhere in West
Vancouver."
Calls were made to West Vancouver and it was soon

97
X Marks the Spot
established that an old quarry did exist on the road up to

A Lesson in Manners ao) Cypress Mountain.

The property belonged to a development company and
Location scout Alan Bartolic had been
was in the rezoning process but we were - in the mean-
assigned the task of scouting North
time - welcome to film there.
Vancouver for a creepy-lool<ing alley as
This location proved ideal for director Rob Bowman.
one of the locations in "Grotesque"
Not only could the top of the cliff be easily accessed by
(3x14). It had to be there for scheduling
road and path, but there was room enough for him to
reasons, although we all knew that
stage the complicated crane shots he envisioned.
North Vancouver was the wrong place
tobe looking and that anything he came
The entire site was accessible by a servicable road,
although the lack of flat ground to park work trucks was
up with would be less than perfect.
When the time came to review the
problematic. Fortunately, this would be a Second Unit

photofiles with director Kim Manners, I

shoot, which meant The concern
"less" of everything.

suggested Alan take care of it since he that did finally arisewas the possibility of snow, as film-
hadn't yet worked directly with Kim and ing was scheduled for December 12, 1995, and we were,
was looking forward to inching a little technically, at altitude. As luck would have it, we avoided
closer to the creative core of the show. the first snowfall of the year by a week.
Alan later recalled his meeting with Kim:

When I arrived at Kim's office door I

think he'd just heard some bad news.

Perhaps that he was expected to film a
creepy alley scene in North Vancouver.
He knew as well as we did that this was GROTESQUE
the wrong place to be and any choice
A
would mean creative compromise.
What was about to learn was Kim's
I

method of expressing his frustrations.

"How the fuck am supposed to shoot a
t long-time detractor of Mulder's asks for help in catching a
murderous gargoyle.

I
ART STUDIO/HISTORICAL BUILDING
fucking monster attack in this mother-
HERITAGE HALL, 31 02 MAIN ST.,
fucking alley!" he exclaimed as I
VANCOUVER
attempted to lay the photofiles out on
the desk in front of him. "We may as Although this location had been booked for several
well shoot this in a parking lot. Hell, why weeks, only four days prior to filming we noticed that the
don't we just use fucking stock footage exterior sidewalk was under major construction. A call to
from an Ed Wood flick, for chrissakes." the City was imminent. The construction crew reassured
Words to that effect. us that the work would be completed by the film day, and
To say I feared for my life would be to
it was, only two hours before the trucks moved in. Prep of

understate the range of emotions I felt

the exterior of this building involved positioning a gar-
moment. had stared into the
at that I
goyle on the rooftop with special bracing to avoid any
abyss and the message staring me
damage to the heritage structure.
back seemed to be saying "We won't be
Heritage Hall is a fairly popular filming location, and
needing you tomorrow." do not recall I

over the years there have been numerous parking com-

the walk back to the locations office. I

plaints from neighbours. In response to the complaints,

do remember not being able to feel my
the City requested that we park our trucks a block further
legs.
away. Several months later a rumour - that The X-Files
When Kim got wind of my reaction to
his blustering, he came down to the
was responsible for burning this location - surfaced. Even

locations office. "Sorry about that, bud,"

now, similar myths abound community. In
in the the film

reality. The X-Files' locations team paved the way to

he said. "It wasn't about you. It was
about that motherfucking alley!" scores of new locations in the Lower Mainland, and we
were often shadowed by other companies.

98
 SEASON THREE
DARK ALLEY
ALLEY AT BONANZA MEAT MARKET,
1ST ST. AND LONSDALE AVE., NORTH VANCOUVER Wrapping the
gargoyle for
"Grotesque"
The alley was scheduled on the same day as a studio
(3x14).
shoot and therefore had to be found in nearby North
Vancouver, while reflecting the exterior sandstone block
facade of Heritage Hall. Our only option did not match,
but production designerGraeme Murray resolved the
problem by suggesting that we paint the wails on one
entire side of the alley to look like Heritage Hall. The
wails had to be painted back after filming.
While filming, director Kim Manners
wanted more blood on the razor, the
PIPER MARU gargoyle's murderous weapon.
Props informed him that a severed
A French salvage ship arrives in San Diego with its crew dying throat would not produce much
of radiation burns, victims of an alien form that enters and blood, so having more blood would
leaves humans as an oily film. not reflect reality. Kim, rather
stunned by the response, looked
up and said, "A gargoyle killing
CHINESE RESTAURANT (HONG KONG)
people isn't reality either, so give
THE HO-HO CHOP SUEY HOUSE, me some more damned blood." >

102 EAST PENDER ST., VANCOUVER

When searching for scripted locations, the most logical

candidates do not always make the cut. Availability or
scheduling concerns sometimes intervene to force other
choices. Not so this time around. Hong Kong was on the
locations menu and we were fortunate in finding a
neglected old Chinese restaurant beneath a rooming
house on the edge of Vancouver's Chinatown.
The edge of Chinatown made the difference here, as
filming in Chinatown is at best extremely expensive, for
what is gained in production value and at worst a loca-
tions nightmare. Most merchants resented our presence,
but tolerated us as long as they got a piece of the action.
When the prep crew arrived on lanuary 8, 1996, the
*A»*'
Ho-Ho had already been out of business for some time.
izWAKS
Several inches of grease coated every surface in the well-
worn kitchen. The interior, however, remained fully intact.
Furniture, appliances, cooking utensils - even calendars *g^Ji|X-Fi!esi§lJit«
and wall ornaments - had not been disturbed since the
TODD PITTSON « i^^M.^^
day the restaurant closed its doors, it was a good fit for
us as we required a spacious booth-style seating
arrangement and four days to clean and prep the set. The We revisited the Ho-Ho (why not,
cleaners alone took two full days to scour and disinfect we cleaned it up the first time
the kitchen so that the crew could access the location around) later in Season Three
from the back alley. during the Chinatown-featured
A vacant restaurant meant no buyouts for loss of busi- episode "Hell Money" (3x19).
ness and the chance to hold our set for several days after

99
X Marks the Spot
filming if necessary. This latter practice had become
increasingly important to the scouting and negotiation
process by Season Three, as scenes grew more compli-
cated and ambitious in their execution and therefore more
time-consuming to film.
This place was once a mainstay of the Chinatown
restaurant scene, the ornate neon sign featuring promi-
nently any Chinatown street scene. The neon
in virtually

sign hung from the building, but was beyond repair

still

and subsequently removed by 1997. The exterior night

footage depicting a very vibrant Chinatown represents
stock footage taken elsewhere.

MIRIMAR NAVAL AIR BASE

ORTONA CRES., DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL
DEFENCE (DND) JERICHO BASE, VANCOUVER
There was only one military base of any consequence
The sniper from "The End" (5x20).
in the Lower Mainland, so when an initial discussion of
locations was held for this episode, the Jericho Base was

t the one and only suggestion presented. With

lined streets of cookie-cutter-style
barracks, and parade grounds, this became Miramar Naval
its

base housing, aging

tree-

Air Base. We had simply to pick Commander lohansen's

house and install the requisite checkposts and sentry huts
on the adjacent streets.
With the permit process uncomfortably drawn out for
Wild walls: moveable walls.
an episodic television schedule - final approval rested
with the Department of National Defence (DND) in
Ottawa - we were fortunate in having fans in high places
who were willing to grant verbal permission by telephone
and "worry about the paperwork later." First assistant
director and Lone Gunman Tom Braidwood simply
remarked, "When in Rome. ." . .

We returned here to film scenes involving the young

Cigarette Smoking Man (circa 1962) at his Fort Bragg,
North Carolina barracks, this just before the barracks
were officially demolished by a wrecking crew.
A Standing set designed on DND lericho Base housing
was constructed for "Christmas Carol" (5x05) and
"Emily" (5x07). Playing as Bill Scully Ir.'s San Diego Naval
Station home,it made production sense to film these

lengthy scenes on a soundstage, where a larger version of

- complete with wild walls - offered
the original interior
advantages not available to us in the cramped practical
Cigarette Smoking Man: now and then. location.

100
 SEASON TH REE
KALLENCHUCK'S OFFICE
A J ATA N STUDIOS, RAILWAY ST.,
NORTH VANCOUVER

As this was very much an episode about "the deep blue

sea," we hard to come up with a harbour view set-
tried
ting for salvage broker leraldine Kallenchuk's office. Having
been through a major scout for similar office settings on
"Nisei" (3x09), I thought we had the territory covered
until one of our scouts showed me pictures of a shop and
studio under the north end of the Second Narrows Bridge. Location managers cannot be in

every place at every time. Luckily,

A long, narrow office space above the shop offered a
some people actually had a sense of
breathtaking view of the bridge structure and waterway.
humour. During Season Four, when
The owner was in the process of turning this space into
The X-Fi/es' popularity had been con-
his own office, so with some paint and lumber, the con-
firmed, one man had been waiting for
struction department helped him along and gave us a
some time to move his car, which was
great salvage office. blocked by a set decorating truck.
When the Teamster driver finally
returned, the man asked for an
explanation. "Don't you watch televi-
GAUTHIERS APARTMENT sion?" the driver asked. "What does
3215 VICTORIA DR., VANCOUVER that do with anything?" the
have to
man wanted to know. "Haven't you
heard?" the driver returned. "The X-
At the concept meeting for this episode, a house was Files has been given the keys to the
described which sounded very familiar.
for a San Francisco-style row house or apartment (the only
We were looking
ti city." The inconvenienced man simply
laughed, and drove away. Luckily he
exterior consisted of Mulder knocking at the front door) was Second Unit location manager
with a large open floorplan and some brick detail. Rob Murdoch's friend.
Irecall going home that night and fixating on the
ground floor of my house which, while too confining for a
film crew, offered certain characteristics common to our
discussion earlier in was on
the day. Within moments, I

the phone to my next-door neighbour, whose home was The budget for raw 35mm film
stock was pegged at 12,000 feet
almost identical mine but had been recently renovated.
to
per day for two cameras. On more
Walls had been knocked out to expose a central brick
than one occassion, veteran direc-
fireplace and create an open floorplan. After a quick
tor Rob Bowman came close to
pitch, my neighbour was more than happy to comply.
using 20,000 feet per day, with the
The large Trout Lake Park and Community Centre park-
other veteran director, Kim
ing lot across the street offered ample parking for crew
Manners, not far behind. In con-
and circus, while was happy to watch the proceedings
I

trast, Chris — as a relative neophyte

from my kitchen window next door. Ironically, my neigh-
— tended to take much
to directing
bour - a local actor - had appeared in "Miracle Man" more time setting up and shooting
(1x17). At the time of filming, she ran the ground level of
a scene, and never came close to
her home as a bed and breakfast.
shooting 20,000 feet of film in one
day.

101
X Marks the Spot

PIPER MARU
CHARLOTTE EXPLORER
On "Piper Maru" (3x15), the inte-
rior of Ballantyne Pier doubled as

two international airports — Hong An episode named after a ship named after Gillian
Kong and San Francisco — while Anderson's daughter needed a hero vessel to call its own.
simultaneously hosting the After a number of calls to local shippers and marinas, we
assault of a military hazmat team chose the I 90-foot Charlotte Explorer, a converted seismo-
on a salvage vessel (the Piper graphic vessel originally built for an company. oil
Maru) docked outside. Owned by Sewell's IVIarine Group
West Vancouver, it
of
had been refitted for use as a luxury fishing lodge. Not
only did this vessel look deep sea-worthy, but it also had
a large fantail rear deck, which was to prove very useful
to the handlers of the Newtsuit, a 900-pound deep sea
diving apparatus developed and built in North Vancouver.
The Charlotte Explorer was moored on the waterfront in
Wide establishing stock shots of a
East Vancouver, which was convenient to our first loca-
vessel, very similar to the Charlotte
tion, Ballantyne Pier. The ship would be berthed for a day
Explorer but anchored far out at
of filming and two days of prep and wrap before being
sea, arrived courtesy of co-produc-
er Paul Rabwin to complete the illu-
moved to Berry Point - where underwater visibility was
sion.
much better - for all scenes involving the diver's submer-
sion in the Newtsuit. Here the vessel would remain for an
additional three days of work.
Budgetary concerns (yes, after renting a vessel of this
we remained very cost-conscious)
size for six days,

t) dictated that
carefully planned
all movements and spottings were
vessel
and orchestrated, as The X-Files was
While trying to secure permission
paying for fuel as well as the wages of the captain, a
to place an 18K light on the roof of
chief, an assistant engineer, and a deckhand. The last
the Eaton's building, location scout
thing we wanted to see was a lengthy docking process
Alan Bartolic and Louisa sat, anx-
needlessly repeated because the vessel had been berthed
iously, in an office for nearly an
incorrectly to camera.
entire day — the day before the
shoot — waiting for a representative
to return to the office to sign the APOCRYPHA
location contract.
Mulder, who has captured Krycek, travels to a missile silo in
the northern U.S. to reveal an alien craft. Scully and Mulder
get as far as the door, while Krycek gets left behind with the
black oil.

SKATING RINK/STREET/ALLEY
ROBSON SQUARE SKATING RINK,
600 ROBSON ST., VANCOUVER
This episode required thirteen practical locations and
ten sets. The Lone Gunmen were to go ice skating, but all
the skating rinks in the Lower Mainland were booked at
The lone Gunmen: {left to right) Langly (Dean this time of the year (January). The optimal compromise -

Hagland), Frohike (Tom Braidwood), Byers

which ultimately was more visually interesting - was the
(Bruce Harwood).

102
 SEASON THREE
open-air rink at Robson Square. Tom Braidwood is a nat-
ural on skates, itwas seldom that The X-Files stars were
in full daylight view in the downtown core, so the Lone
Gunmen's walk across Howe Street to Mulder's car
attracted unprecedented crowds.

CEMETERY
STANLEY PARK, VANCOUVER

The cemetery was created near the Rose Garden in

Stanley Park. The Park's representative noticed David's A dog named Blue: one of David's best friends.

dog, Blue, frolicking without a leash. A tethered Blue was

an unlikely scenario and, to avoid any conflict, an unsus-
pecting Jaap Broeker, David's stand-in and one of Blue's
best friends, was reprimanded for Blue's actions. Stanley Park was used as a loca-
tion more than six times while The
X-Files was produced in Vancouver.

PUSHER

Scully and Mulder struggle to arrest and convict a felon,

Robert Modell, who can make people see anything he wants
them to see.

t)
DRIVING RANGE
TAKAYA GOLF CENTRE.
TOO APEX AVE.. NORTH VANCOUVER

Originally scripted as a golf course, the concept

changed somewhat when a huge snowfall failed to dissi-
pate before filming began in late January, leaving most
local courses blanketed in snow. The placement of cam-
ouflaged SWAT members and a camera position on the
treed perimeter were also important considerations in
choosing this particular driving range. Not only did a Celebrities often visited The X-Files set.
forest abruptly begin where the range ended, but an Pictured here are David and the Smashing
access road skirted the entire perimeter. Pumpkins.
Given these considerations, setting these scenes at a
driving range rather than a golf course was both more
believable and more visually appealing in the dead of
winter. It also gave the hard-working crew an opportunity
Foo Dave Grohl and his
Fighters'
to brush up on swing over lunch break.
their
\wifehad walk-on roles on "Pusher"
Explaining a $12 petty cash receipt for clubs and a
(3x17), having been invited to set
bucket of golf balls while scouting golf courses with
by Gillian.
director Rob Bowman and producer |.P. Finn resulted in

a rather awkward call from production accountant

Angela Will.

103
X Marks the Spot

SUPERMARKET
FALSE CREEK GROCERY,
Dirty ctp)
760 WEST 6TH AVE., VANCOUVER

Very few production office staff or Here we had

to come up with the Mt. Foodmore
crew members worked longer fiours Supermarket Loudon County, Virginia, if you need a
in
than our dedicated core group of loca- supermarket for a day or two of filming, round up all
tion production assistants. With a fif- interested candidates (many have no interest in disrupt-
teen-hour workday allowable under the ing the shopping habits of long-term clientele) and decide
Directors Guild of Canada contract, this what the budget will allow. As of lanuary 31 996 (the
, 1

entry-level position is the lowest-paid —

day of filming), this meant anywhere from $7,000 to
yet arguably the most versatile — in
$ 8,000 per day of closure, depending on the time and day.
1

production.
For our purposes, only supermarkets with three or
Along with the assistant location
more shopping aisles and at least three check-out
manager, production assistants are
carousels were considered, since Rob wanted a full-size,
almost always first on location and last
full-service store.
to leave, "parking" the catering truck in
Our final choice was based as much on these require-
the morning and ending their day only
ments as on budgetary concerns. The owner required that
after the last truck in the unit (usually
filming be completed on one of his quieter days, to
the camera has shown its tail-
truck)
minimize the inconvenience to his regular customers.
lights. a largely thankless
Theirs Is
JVIeat and produce deliveries were re-scheduled to avoid
training position with a steep learning
curve for the bright and ambitious. the deterioration of fresh stock which, after twenty-four

What they learn has often as much to hours or more on the shelves, would have been rendered
do with public relations and social work unfit for resale. This, in turn, would have resulted in a

as it does with the mechanics of mak- rather large grocery bill for The X-Files.
Similarly, restocking shelves with "fake" or "cleared"
ing a movie or television show.
Such was the case when we found
t> product - to avoid copyright infringement - can be a

ourselves on the edge of Vancouver's time-consuming process. In this case, a full set dec crew
Skid Row during the filming of scenes descended on the supermarket at 6 a.m. in order to be
for "Hell Money" (3x19). We had been camera-ready by 9 a.m.
Ho Ho Chop
filming at the defunct Night filming, which is a less costly option when using
Suey Restaurant and up and down the locations such as this, became a scheduling impossibility
lOO-block of East Pender Street. With when it became necessary to add several exterior night
parking at a premium in Chinatown, scenes to the end of this day's call sheet. That aside, a
most of our vehicles had been left in a storypoint in the teaser involves iViodeirs view of a police
public two blocks away, with only
lot
cruiser pulling into the parking lot out front. Written as a
essential worktrucks parked nearby. day scene, subsequent day scenes in the teaser would not
It was late in the afternoon when I
have worked for the story, even if scheduling could have
was called to the electrics trailer by a
accommodated a switch to night. We therefore completed
rather distraught production assistant.
our work at the supermarket and, as darkness fell, moved
The trailer was parked at the mouth of
across the street to a parking lot owned by the City of
one of Vancouver's most disreputable
Vancouver. This parking became the Beltway Commuter
lot
alleys and, while unclear, the message
Lot in Falls Church, Virginia, where Mulder and Scully
relayed over the walkie seemed to indi-
spend half the night staking out a pay telephone.
cate that an altercation had occured
between production assistant Rob
Chalmers and a resident of the 'hood.

104
 SEASON TH REE
FBI LOBBY
GRANVILLE SQUARE,
200 GRANVILLE ST., VANCOUVER Contrary to what may have
appeared in print elsewhere,
This wasa challenge, since the real j. Edgar Hoover Granville Square — not Simon
Building Washington, D.C. bears no resemblance to
in Fraser University — appeared twice
anything in downtown Vancouver. While there are no In the series as the FBI headquar-
shortage of office buildings of all colours and stripes, ters, in this episode and in "Talitha

most lobbies are either cramped or poorly laid out for Cumi" (3x24).
filming purposes. The architectural term is sense of entry,
which is what this location demanded as we were recre-
ating an existing location built on a monumental scale.
The building we finally chose, while much smaller in
scale than the real thing, offered a believable sense of
I arrived to find Rob pacing the side-

when viewed from

walk, shal<ing his head in disbelief. He
entry certain angles. At the time,
had been assigned the task of guard-
Granville Square housed a number of high-profile tenants,
ing the van from intruders and would-
but we were fortunate that the ground floor offices - now
be thieves, having been shown a posi-
occupied by Pacific Press - were vacant and accessible to
tion on the sidewalk at the alley's
our art and lighting departments.
entrance from which he could watch
Daytime pedestrian traffic through the lobby was, how-
both the van and a generator parked
ever, very heavy and precluded any notion of filming here
beside it.

during office hours. Some signage and minor set dressing "This is pathetic and disgusting," he
was allowed on the morning of filming, but most of the began. "Do have to put up with this
I

art department's set-up had to wait until 5:30 p.m. A kind of abuse?" He gestured down the
piano mover was hired to remove a grand piano and a alley where a man sat in a wheelchair,
local art gallery contracted to remove a large piece of tex- back to us. As the man glanced
tile art hanging on the wall. Similarly, my deal with the
t) his
back over his shoulder, a woman's face
company managing the property stipulated that the lobby suddenly peered out from in front of
be returned to its original configuration by 7 a.m. the the wheelchair. She proceeded to
following morning. direct a barrage of colourful expletives
at us. The image may have caught me
off guard, but the message was loud
and clear. In the best gutter English,
we were told to "get the fuck away . . .

can't you see you're making this guy

nervous ... just want to get this guy
I

off so can get my fucking money and

I

buy my fucking drugs."

A hooker, on her knees, servicing a
guy in a wheelchair in an alley strewn
with spent syringes and garbage?
"Welcome to Skid Row," said to Rob. I

"C'mon, let's just leave them alone and

move a few feet this way, out of sight.
They'll be gone in five minutes."
The FBI lobby
I I then explained that, while he had
certainly done the right thing by calling

105
X Marks the Spot

TESO DOS BICHOS

A vengeful jaguar spirit that is released when an Ecuadorean

Riverview was still being used as a shaman's remains are unearthed wreaks havoc in a Boston
facility for mental patients. One day, museum.
as Gillian was headed for her trail-

er, a young man, being chased by

production assistant Woody MUSEUM/MORGUE/GRAD OFFICE/PARKING LOT
Morrison, ran up to her. Unruffled, RIVERVIEW SITE,
Gillian simply smiled as he took her 500 LOUGHEED HWY., COQUITLAM
picture.
With the exception of two private residences, most of
the locations for this episode were contained on the
Riverview site. Construction co-ordinator Rob Maier was
challenged with the construction of eleven sets, the most
my attention to the situation, his pre- extensive of which was a maze of six tunnels constructed
scribed position was always subject to house the feline horror. Special effects make-up artist
to adjustment. "Thisis a very tough Toby Lindala created a "fake" cat and attached it to a
neighbourhood. Most of the residents stick to complete a close-up of Scully being attacked by
down here see film crews as a nui- the creature. During the first few takes, Gillian couldn't
sance and big inconvenience. Just use stop laughing. Neither could the crew. Director Kim
common sense, which is sometimes Manners remarked that, "No matter what do, kitty cats 1

not so common. Give them their space."

are not fucking scary."
Another production assistant came
weeks of feline presence at the studio, a
After a few
face to face with a different sort of
special cleaningcrew was recruited to rid the place of the
problem while filming scenes for
"Genderbender" (1x13) at the Rowlatt
Historic Farm in Campbell Valley Park.
Given the wet weather and the poor
t pungent smell and repugnant leftovers.

condition of the lane providing sole

HELL MONEY
access to the site, shuttle vans had
been used to ferry cast and crew from Mulder and Scully discover a link between a sinister lottery and
the circus — in a parking lot a quarter of
the blackmarket for human body parts.
a mile away — to the commune. It was
late in the afternoon and getting dark
W.».S.E.HaMset
to become Asian
gambKng P5«"»o"J^

JOSE CHUNG'S 'FROM

OUTER SPACE'

The story of an alien visitation is told through flashbacks as

Left to right: Gaffer Dave Tickell with stand-ins novelist lose Chung conducts interviews to learn the whole
Bonnie Hay and ]aap Broeker. truth.

106
 SEASON THREE
DINER
OVALTINE CAFE,
251 EAST HASTINGS ST., VANCOUVER when a production assistant sum-
moned assistant location manager
An all-time favourite episode. The diner was scheduled Ainslie WIggs on her walkie. There was
as the second location of the day and involved a unit a problem at the shuttle van parked at
move from a nearby residence. This, of course, takes time, the end of the lane.

but the move to the diner was exceptionally expedient. The story subsequently related

Not expecting this, director Rob Bowman, had returned to involved a crew member who had
his hotel for a massage. The crew spent an hour drinking
requested that the shuttle come down
to set to take him back to the circus.
coffee awaiting Rob.
For some reason, the day-call driver
The Ovaitine and its famous neon sign was one of the
failed to answer his walkie and a pro-
very few locations which required almost no prep. Set dec
duction assistant was dispatched to
and construction were relieved of their duties and props
relay the message. Approaching the
had only to place edible pies in the racks.
van, she was shocked to discover the
driver engaged in what looked to her
like an act of masturbation. He sat in

the driver seat illuminated only by an

HOSPITAL/AUTOPSY ROOM/MOTEL ROOM/COMMUNITY
CENTRE/MEDICAL OFFICE/MILITARY ROOM/HAROLD'S CAR overhead light. The production assis-
WOODLANDS HOSPITAL SITE, CENTRE BUILDING, tant made no attempt to interfere.

9 EAST COLUMBIA ST., NEW WESTMINSTER She simply walked away.

It was my job to broach this subject
in previous years the Centre Building had been used with the transportation co-ordinator,
quite extensively by film groups. This was evident by the who appeared dumbfounded as he
amount garbage (old flats, garbage, missing doors
of film listened to the story. He promised to

and door hardware, etc.) spread throughout the building.

Once the heating had been disconnected, interest in the
t> make a discreet inquiry, and by late the
following morning, was able to offer a

site waned. Wading through the maze of junk, the poten- very different explanation.
tial for filming numerous scenes became apparent. With a Evidently what the production assis-

healthy budget in mind, and production designer Graeme

tant had witnessed was not a lewd act
Murray at my side, the opportunity to clean the facility
after all. The combination of poor light-

ing and the practiced motion of the

surfaced. The trash was labelled and removed, and the
driver's hands working methodically in
floor scoured. Within days, the was returned to
facility
his lap had only left this briefest of
some semblance of its original derelict state. The old
impressions. The driver — who suffered
kitchen was painted grey and the tiles were whitewashed,
from some form of cancer — had really
contributing to the sanitary look of a morgue. The hall-
been rolling a marijuana cigarette, a
way was also painted and a small room off the hallway
palliative for his condition.
was revitalized to pose as a motel room.
I I couldn't decide if this was better or
While filming, the two site commissionaires informed
worse than the first scenario. could I

us that many of the other buildings would soon become only suggest that drivers on the show
vacant, thus opening up more filming opportunities. This shouldn't be smoking pot for any
was an X-Files locations secret, and in Season Four the reason, certainly not while on the job.
site was exclusively and repeatedly frequented by us. Iwas then assured that the driver
Woodlands was eventually referred to as Studio 4 and, would not be invited back and that no
surprisingly, the film community-at-large incorrectly prior knowledge of his condition had
assumed we possessed exclusive rights to the entire site. In been noted or he would not have been
due time, Millennium found out where we had been hiding. hired in the first place.
As buildings were vacated, we occupied them, careful
to adhere to the stipulations that the structural integrity
of the buildings not be altered and changes could be

107
X Marks the Spot
made only if the buildings were restored to their original

state. The commissionaires guarded our sets, inspected

the wrap-out, and developed many friendships with crew
members. They were so integral to filming at Woodlands
that when the site was almost completely vacant and
their on-site jobs were threatened, they were placed on
The X-Files payroll in case we needed the facility at a
moment's notice.
IVIore

the
than twenty-one episodes were filmed at
Woodlands site.
^
AVATA R

Cigarette Smoking Man tries to discredit Assistant Director Skinner

and frame him for murder by exploiting Skinner's nightmare of a
iiw r 8KIH hag-like succubus.

Mitch Pileggi as Assistant Director Skinner

CHESAPEAKE LOUNGE
THE GERARD LOUNGE, SUTTON PLACE HOTEL,
Celtic Roulette ctp)
845 BURRARD ST., VANCOUVER
Preliminary discussions surrounding Upscale. Dark. Dignified. Wood-panelled. During the con-
"Hell Money" (3x19) suggested a hellish cept meeting for this episode, these words summarized
episode for the locations team. Not only
t> the requirement for this location. Lounges and bars are a
was a fait accompli that Vancouver's
it
dime a dozen in Vancouver, but finding just the right
Chinatown would stand in for its much establishment for these scenes left few choices. As luck
larger San Francisco cousin, but that would have it, other factors came into play, leading us in
locations would have to be found in
one direction very quickly.
which to construct seven standing sets
i had already booked a suite of rooms on the opulent
(Crease Clinic on the Riverview Hospital
fourteenth floor of the Hotel Vancouver as the place in
site was used) and create an ornate
which Skinner awakens to make a rather unnerving dis-
gaming room.
covery regarding the evils of casual sex. As a point of
A dozen local halls and performance
interest, when a film crew uses a room on this floor, it
venues were considered before choosing
must reserve the entire floor for filming days. Given the
the W.I.S.E. (Welsh Irish Scottish English)
rental cost of some of these suites, hotel management
Hall on Vancouver's East Side. Its inter-
feels it unfair that guests be subjected to the bustle of a
mediate size was appealing, as was the
faux balcony which ran the length of the
film crew outside their door. Fair enough, but we had to

east wall of the building. For the sake of be prepared to write a large cheque.
visual interest and depth, this offered the
The shooting schedule dictated that the Ambassador
art department something to work with. Hotel lounge scenes be shot at the beginning of our day,

Still, the art and construction depart- followed by a late-morning move to the Hotel Vancouver.
ments were faced with transforming a This was in accordance with the wishes of the Sutton
hall used by ballroom dancers and folk Place Hotel, who are ever-supportive of the film industry
singers into a Chinese gaming den. (and for good reason since many productions in

The transformation was realized by Vancouver use the Sutton Place to house their out-of-
building a second balcony along the west town talent and crew) but not at the expense of guest
wall to mirror the original. The two were comfort. Ironically, none of the three lounges in the Hotel

108
 SEASON THREE
Vancouver were suitable for the scripted lounge scenes
and we were fortunate that The Gerard Lounge is only
a block away from the Hotel Vancouver.
We were also fortunate to have more than one in then connected overhead by a series of
with this establishment, as both first assistant director ornately carved Chinese screens or lat-

Vladimir Stefoff and cast driver Baba Ram spent a great tices, thereby creating a more intimate

deal of off-set time here over the years.

space. A number of pillars supported
these screens at regular intervals. The
Many visiting film stars hang out at The Gerard,
stage was plugged and the gymnasium-
so a visit will invariably be rewarded with a brush
style hardwood floor treated. Last was a
with fame. Or infamy. '

thorough paint job.

Before any of this could begin, howev-
er, negotiations and arrangement had to
QUAGMIRE
be made with the handful of renter-users

Scully and Mulder go in search of a legendary prehistoric lake

of the facility tocompensate or relocate
for the two-week duration of our activi-
monster.
ties.

The big challenge lay in negotiating a

deal with Rogue Folk Club organizers,
FISHING DOCK/TED'S BAIT AND TACKLE/LAKEFRONT/QUAGMIRE who had booked a Celtic Mini Festival
PITT LAKE, PITT MEADOWS for the weekend prior to filming. With no
suitable alternate venue available, and
musicians flying in from as far away as
Three lake locations were selected to fulfill the script Ireland, it was not an event which could
requirements demanded by this episode. The fishing dock be cancelled.
and and Tackle Shop were combined at
exterior Ted's Bait The overriding concern was the fact
Pitt The lakeside trailer was outfitted with Graeme's
Lake.
design, and the fishing dock was filmed as is. The
Scully/Mulder driving scene was actually filmed on
t that the Celtic musicians
forming on a movie
ing the configuration of the
set,
would be per-
completely
performance
alter-

Neaves Road which leads to the fishing dock. space. A portable stage would be requir-
ed for the performers, since the existing
stage would be inaccessible. Similarly,
the placement of pillars dictated that the
ROCKY LAKEFRONT, QUAGMIRE REEDS, RV PARK
new stage be placed along a side wall,
BUNTZEN LAKE, PORT MOODY which would alter both existing sound
and lighting arrangements. A deal was
struck whereby The X-Files would cover
Buntzen Lake accommodates almost as much filming as
these costs, which were minimal when
the Seymour Demonstration Forest and some of the forest compared \A/ith the cost of the set itself.
areas have been eroded by film crews. As a result, loca-
A pay-or-play deal of sorts was negoti-
tions are somewhat limited, depending on the time of ated wherein the Rogue Folk Club would
year and extent of public use, and environmental guide- receive a calculated lump sum based on
lines are strictly enforced. Speeding crew vehicles have nightly attendance figures from previous
been the bane most Park facilities.
of site liaisons at Celtic Festivals at the W.I.S.E. Hall,
The location quagmire reeds was granted on the
for the regardless of attendance figures at this
basis that only essential crew enter the forest area, a festival. Patrons and musicians alike
walking trail be clearly be marked with flagging tape, and would either love the new venue or hate
any equipment on the side of the road outside the trail be it, and vote with their feet.

placed on plywood. This particular forest area is blanket- I recall sitting in the audience on open-
ed by a spectacular species of moss which takes up to a ing night and counting the empty seats
hundred years to regenerate. Moss hung off the trees and which, by curtain time, could do on one
I

formed webs between branches. The crew completed the

109
X Marks the Spot
filming without any damage, and only one crew member
hand. The audience, for the most part, was reprimanded for speeding. He didn't notice the pro-
seemed appreciative of the sublime duction assistant hiding in the forest armed with a pen
irony, and with the revamped sound and paper, writing down the license plate numbers of
system working well, the musicians offending drivers.
seemed happy to have a venue and an Part of the quagmire reeds set was duplicated at the
enthusiastic audience. Period. studio. When greensman Frank Haddad arrived on set, he
Throughout the weekend, references knew crew had done a good job creating a forest.
his
to The X-Files and the transformation
Frank called it his most memorable experience on the
of the hall, which has to number
show. "It even smelled like a forest," he recalled.
among our top ten sets for creative
use ofa location, were made. Upon LAKE
completion of filming, W.I.S.E. Hall
management requested that the new
RICE LAKE, SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION
FOREST, NORTH VANCOUVER
balcony be left in place for aesthetic
reasons. It vi/as, finally, a huge endeav-
We concluded at Rice Lake. In addition to the "missing
or for one day's worth of filming, but
limbs" and alligator required for the episode, special
not uncommon on a show willing and
effects makeup artist Toby Lindala was expected to create
able to go that extra mile. And an effort
an Ogopogo-type monster whose eel-like body would
not lost on local viewers and fellow
glide on the surface of the water forming a series of arch-
industry workers alike who, for months
es. The monster's first movement had the entire crew and
afterward, requested the address of
director Kim Manners speechless, silent, and disappoint-
"that great Chinese den. Like, where
did you guys film that, anyway?" ed. It appeared as if a giant snake had just ingested fifty
rats, then awkwardly wobbled across the surface of the

water. The final image of the monster was a product of

CGI.
t)
ROCKY ISLAND SET
B.C. RESEARCH WAVE TANK,
3650 WESBROOK MALL UBC .

The rock island where Scully and IVlulder are stranded

was a set constructed at a wave tank - a special indoor
pool where miniature boats undergo hydrodynamic test-
ing. The pool was initially emptied to enable construction

to erect a platform to position and brace the rocky island.

On the day before filming, water was released onto the
set to submerge the platform and expose only the rocky
island, but the platform began to float like a barge. An
emergency crew of carpenters, attired in hipwaders,
worked furiously through the night to secure the struc-
ture. Not only did they have to solve the problem, but
they had to be finished with enough time to allow for the
water to flow onto the set. The entire set was intact with
only hours to spare, but when Kim arrived at the wave
"Don't try this at home." tank, he saw a twelve-foot island in the middle of a 100-
- special efffects makeup artist Toby Lindala foot wave tank. A dot in the middle of nowhere. In total
working on "Patient X" (5x13) and "The Red disbelief, Kim said, "You've got to be kidding." Access to
and the Black" (5x14). the rock was impossible without hipwaders, so Gillian
and David were piggybacked to set.

110
 SEASON THREE
WETWIRED
A sabotaged television signal imparts subliminal suggestions,
turning people's into anxious murderers.

MIRADOR MOTEL
2400 COURT MOTEL,
2400 KINGSWAY, VANCOUVER

It took the better part of three seasons to get to our

favourite motel in the entire Lower Mainland, but we
finally made it here for the penultimate episode of Season
Three. This collection of meticulously maintained white
and green bungalows lays out in a 3.5-acre "U" around
inner-facing grass courtyards and a centrally-located
motel office.

army housing during the Second

Originally built for
World War, the site was converted into an autocourt in
1946. The sixty-odd units constitute a true gem, from
original linoleum floors to chrome-and-formica dinette
sets, and vintage Kirby vacuum cleaners. A bold neon On location at 2400 Motel, Vancouver

sign, featured twice in this episode, proclaims both

lineage and location. The words "2400 Court" also
appear on a book of matches from which Mulder takes
a phone number.
Several rooms were reserved for four nights, allowing
both set decorating and construction departments to
D
settle in. The amount and nature of the work to be
filmed in Scully'sroom dictated that a replica of this
room be created on our soundstage. Scenes in which We revisited tine 2400 Court Motel
day and night motel interiors were physically tied to late in Season Five to film scenes
motel exteriors were shot on location. If an exterior was for "The Pine Bluff Variant" (5x18),
revealed from inside Scully's room, or a scene played as at which time Chris Carter sadly
a continuous shot from the interior to the exterior, had
it announced the move to L.A. to
to be shot on location. For this reason, a breakaway door assembled crew members.
was added to the rear of Scully's unit, while the front
door was replaced with our own rigged version, which
would later sustain several rounds of gunfire. Scully's
room - 274 - was also redressed. Mulder checked in to
room 127.
We were fortunate that it was late April, for Easter
was over and the summer tourist season had not yet
begun. This enabled us to pick whatever rooms we
wished, although filming activity was confined to the
west half of the motel grounds and new guests given
rooms in the "east wing." Night scenes in the parking lot
were lit from the roof of an adjacent apartment complex
and with the help of two condors placed around the
corner and across the street.

111
X Marks the Spot
This was the final night of Main Unit location filming
for the season for both director Rob Bowman and odd
episode designates. Wrap was called just before 11 p.m.,
and once equipment had been stored in the work trucks,
several crew members took advantage of our room reser-
vations to host a private party.
Several weeks
later, a photograph of David and Gillian
The Truth About Poles ctp)
taken by photographer Ken Staniforth and donated
stills

"So an episode about telephone

this is to the 2400 Court Motel disappeared from its position

poles. Is that what you're telling us?" behind the front desk, evidently the object of a souvenir-
Location scouts Alan Bartolic and David hunting guest. It was later replaced by The X-Files.
Caughlan stood indignantly in my office, a
banker's box of rejected photofiles in front
of them. Given the fact that the script for
"Wetvi/ired" (3x23) involved no less than
twelve very specific locations, understood I
TREE FARM
their frustration. Moreover, understood the
I
HAZELGROVE FARM,
prep schedule, with a locations technical FORT LANGLEY
survey just four days away.
Five houses were required for this Orchards are not usually associated with the Lower
episode. Two of these — the safe house and Mainland and for good reason. Anything approaching the
Mrs. Scully's house — had been relatively large commercial variety simply does not exist here.
easy finds. The safe house, located at The Okanagan - a four-hour drive due east - is true
6120 MacDonald Street, was actually a orchard country, but too far to travel crew and equipment
stately home on an acreage in South for a single day of filming.
Vancouver. It was slated for redevelopment Several weeks before prep began on this episode, writer
and, in Its vacant condition, had been used
by several film crews in the past. It was sto-
t) Mat Beck (who was also visual effects supervisor on
The X-Files during Seasons One to Three) asked to see
rybook-perfect, being empty and over- photofiles of all the orchards in the Lower Mainland. He
grown. A circular driveway offered Mulder a was visualizing macabre night scenes shot amidst row
clear point of view of the ubiquitous cable
after row of cultivated trees. Needless to say, a very small
van as it pulled into the yard.
collection of photofiles went south very quickly.
was one of the very few locations in
This
The choice - if you can call it that - was between a
which we virtually walked in and shot as is.
small apple orchard in Delta (young trees with a maxi-
The greens crew thinned out some shrub-
mum and a private hazelnut orchard
height of eight feet)
bery next to the front door, giving Mulder a
just outside Fort Langley. had been intrigued by the lat-
I

place to hide when he saw the van. The

ter ever since my days working on The Black Stallion,
construction department installed a break-
which was filmed almost exclusively in this area.
away back door — which Mulder kicked in
Hazelnut trees, which typically stand twenty to thirty-feet
to gain access — and temporarily removed
high, have a rather unique appearance, with very little
a large development permit application
sign from the front yard. With no furniture trunk and a wide mushroom-like crown. It was early

to relocate, set dec simply removed a enough in the spring that no leaves had yet appeared,

developer's model of the property and lending a visual starkness to those perfectly straight
dressed in a table and a couple of chairs. rows. When lit for night filming, they exuded an eeriness
befitting the show. Ideal silent witnesses to a clandestine
burial.
Having just wrapped the Main Unit portion of his last
episode, director Rob Bowman was thrilled to pull an all-

nighter out here with the Second Unit crew.

We returned to this orchard for "Schizogeny" (5x09).

112
 SEASON THREE
RIDDOCK'S HOUSE/LANE
3792 WEST 1ST AVE., VANCOUVER

Given the subject matter of this episode, a very specific

requirement was essential for both the Riddock and Patnik
houses: a clear sightline from the living or dining room to
a back alley where a utility pole had to be visible.
With regard to the Riddock house, an unobstructed view Mrs. Scully's house was found a few
of the neighbours' backyard was also required to stage blocks away. The owners had construct-
the scene which Riddock's wife hallucinates her
in ed a beautiful Cape Cod replica which
husband and another woman in each other's arms on a worked very well for the scripted scenes.
hammock. A total of five houses played in this episode The problem facing the scouts had
(these two as well as the suburban house next door, a safe
more to do with the views required from
the living/dining rooms of both these
house, and Mrs. Scully's house), and production designer
Graeme Murray wanted each home to be distinctly homes than with actual architecture,
although production designer Graeme
different in appearance.
Murray felt that, given the number of
Riddock's house was conceived of as lower middle-class
houses in this show, each should be of a
suburban and both the house next door and the immedi-
contrasting style. Patnik's house should
ate neighbourhood had to reflect this. Similarly, interiors
be a moderately large, two-storey wood-
had to be large enough to accommodate a film crew.
frame structure located in an older,
The house we chose fit the above requirements. It was
upscale neighbourhood. Riddock's
also the home of one of our two full-time location scouts,
house was to have a more suburban
David Caughlan. character, a modest, single-storey home
in a similar neighbourhood. The subur-

t) ban house, which - as a storypoint - had

to be located next door to Riddock's,
was to be of similar design and from the
same era.
As Alan and David pointed out, these
combined requirements eliminated two-
thirds of the homes in Vancouver. If the
architecture and worked
Interior layout
for story, a tree or garage obscured the
view to the back alley, although in some
cases there simply was no back alley.
The opposite was just as often true — the
telephone pole in the alley was clearly
visible from the kitchen or the bathroom.
At this point in prep, and with the pres-
sures of production mounting, good
location scouts show their real value. Not
only isa constantly-revised knowledge
of the city invaluable, but so too is the
On Vancouver's downtown streets for "The Pine Bluff Variant" (5x18).

113
X Marks the Spot

TALITHA CUMI

Jeremiah Smith, a renegade alien done who can transform his

appearance, is captured and questioned by Cigarette Smoking
Man, but escapes before Alien Bounty Hunter appears.

ability to visualize and Interpret script

FAST FOOD RESTAURANT
requirements (technically the location
manager's job) on the fly. By Season
A&W, 6535 KINGSWAY, BURNABY
Five, a scout presented a less-than-
if

jdeal location file, he also presented a Staging a shootout at a fast food restaurant is sensitive.
sketch of the location as he had scouted Most fast food restaurants are too busy to entertain busi-
it with notes on camera angles and ness closure, and are very reluctant to endorse any kind
blockings which might make it workable of violence. After a rigorous search and impassioned
in the event that nothing better was pleas to iVlcDonald's, Burger King, and the like, a generic
found. This, in turn, helped the director fast food restaurant and repeat location sated our
to decide which locations were worth his appetites. As with "Oubliette" (3x08), set decchanged the
time to survey. interior the day before shooting and construction covered
In this case, we sat down with a map all references to A&W. A&W staff were hired to assist
of the city and reviewed suitable neigh-
props with food and to oversee filming.
bourhoods, eliminating those without
alleys. were re-examined
Rejected files

for their shortfallsand the territory once

again divided up equally between
scouts. At one point in our discussion,
David abruptly stood up and walked out
of the office. For a moment, thought he
t>
I

had quit in disgust. Two minutes later he -*^|^^P^'''

reappeared and, with a devilish grin,
tossed a photofile on my desk. "This one
will work perfectly," he said confidently,
before walking me through the geogra-
phy of the location.
^^^
Thumbing through the
agree with him. Flipping back to the
cover, I
file,

noted the address and contact

I had to
file ^r^^
name, which listed the resident's name:
David Caughlan. anyone have a
"Will

problem with this?" he asked. "Your

wife?" I joked, then added, "Not if it

works. Same deal as anyone else gets."

So much for Riddick's house. Patnik's
house was eventually found in
Shaughnessy, after retracing our steps
and tweaking the architectural require- Louisa at the Toiko sawmill, used in " lulilhu Cumi" (ixIH) ami
ments. "Herrenvolk" (4x01).

114
 SEASON THREE
SOCIAL SERVICES LOBBY
VANCOUVER CITY HALL,
453 WEST 12TH AVE., VANCOUVER

Thefinal episode of the season afforded the show the

least amount of time before air date, and with vacation in With regard to the use of existing utility
sight, it was critical for director Bob Goodwin to complete
poles, several adjustments and precau-
shooting in the shortest possible time. To expedite the tions were necessary. When Mulder and
process, IVlain Unit and Second Unit, along with assidu- Scully spot the cable van in the alley
ous crews, would descend upon the City, covering sepa- behind Patnik's house, the cable guy is
rate locations to complete the task in eight days. In this already descending the pole using a set
particular episode, locations assigned to Main Unit of handholds. With the advent of cherry
included the A&W, Mulder's family beach house in Surrey, pickers and heightened safety concerns,
a social services office at the old Woodward's Building, the neither hydro nor telco technicians use
parkade at Woodward's, and the sawmill at Toiko handholds any longer. In fact, we
Industries in North Vancouver. Six sets were built on installed our own under supervision and
stage for both units. Second Unit made the trek to the were required to remove them and fill all
beach house, the FBI Headquarters lobby at Granville holes — to guard against dry rot — when
Square, Crease Clinic at Riverview for the exterior prison, done filming.

and City Hall to film the interior social services lobby. The same procedure was followed in

On was given an early

the day of filming, IVlain Unit the alley behind Riddock's house, with

call downtown at the Woodward's building and

time David climbing the pole. As a storypoint,
Second Unit was given a 5 p.m. call time at City Hall, Mulder finds a cable box attached to the
in accordance with City filming policy. Upon arrival,
pole and from removes a large fuse-
it

Second Unit would pre-light the lobby, set-up cameras, like cable trap. Care was taken to stay
outside the ten-foot safety radius from
and have all prerigging complete so Bob could leave
Main Unit at the end of the scheduled day, arrive at the
t> all high voltage lines demanded by
BC Hydro.
second location, and resume filming.
As a final note of interest, poles are
Unit manager and Second Unit first assistant director
jointlyused by both hydro and telephone
Brett Dowler claimed that there was a pressing urgency
companies. When the issue of jurisdic-
to prep the location before the 5 p.m. entry restriction.
tion arose, as it did when requested I

After some convincing, and in consideration of the rare

permission to climb these poles and affix
sunshine that beautiful Friday afternoon, approval to
objects to them, BC Tel deferred to BC
begin some prep was granted. Shortly after 5 p.m., the Hydro on the grounds that the latter
set was ready for filming. The director showed up after technically owned the inside of the pole
9 p.m., due to delays at Main Unit. After midnight the while the telephone company was
crew packed their equipment and left the location, but responsible for only the outside, and our
not quietly. A local resident called to complain about a handholds were penetrating the inner
woman who ironically kept yelling into her walkie, telling portion of the pole. Like some episodes
everyone to be quiet. The "resident" commented that our of The X-Files, the origin of these own-
activity was the most disruptive over the many years of ership rights was never clearly
filming at City Hall. Second Unit quietly returned to explained.
City Hall in the following week for reshoots and there
were no complaints.

115
SEASON POUR: JULY 1996 MAY 19 9 7

A.
By the beginning of Season Four, The X-Fiks had reached critical
mass in North America. David and Gillian's faces were everywhere and
X-F//es-isms such as "trust no one" and "the truth is out there" were
well on their way to assimilation Into the mainstream vocabulary.
With the show so popular - and still picking up steam In foreign
markets - a concerted effort was made by those "down south" (or so
we in Vancouver were led to believe) to rein in the show's budget,
which was climbing close to $2 million US per episode. From an
accountant's point of view, it may have been logical to assume that it

made no sense to spend more on a show which had already reached

the status of both a critical and marketing phenomenon.
From a creative point of view, however, reality was very different.
Each week, a wildly dedicated audience tuned In to see something at
least as good as they had seen the previous week. Better, If possible.
The show had to continue to "deliver," and everyone felt the pressure
to come up with bigger, better episodes to keep those fans tuned In. If
there was a downside. It was that bigger and better usually cost more.
During the first production meeting of the season, as Chris fielded
requests to eliminate expensive scenes involving special effects, large
numbers of extras, and costly custom-built props, he responded with,
"Whatever you want. It's the new me."
"It's the new me" became an In-joke around the production office.

An in-joke since we transported the entire crew nearly 200 miles to

film less than half of the season opener. An in-joke because the per-
episode budget set for Season Four was consistently surpassed. An
in-joke because "The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06), written and
directed by Chris early in Season Five, came in at $2.8 million US, a
figure which director Rob Bowman fell short of by only $10,000 US
for his direction on "Killswitch" (5x11).
Crew members speculated on the job security of anyone who might
decide to take a serious run at compromising the show's quality
through an attempt to reduce costs. In the end, we decided that Chris'
"the new me" was really "the old me" In disguise. For us, the more
things changed, the more they stayed the same.
 "

X Marks the Spot

HERRENVOLK

Reincarnation leremiah Smith leads Mulder to a farm where Mulder sees

clones of his sister, Samantha. Scully discovers what Smith

A sawmill owned by Toiko Industries
was doing at the Social Security Administration.
of North Vancouver was used as a
location in both "Talitha Cumi" (3x24)
and "Herrenvolk" (4x01). For GOLDEN FIELDS
"Herrenvolk," another mill owned by
CHAI-NA-TA GINSENG FARM,
Flavelle Cedar of Port Moody was also WALHACHIN
used to film interior night sequences,
as the ToIko facility proved inappropri- The Season Four opener marked the one and only time
ate for interior work. The Flavelle site that The X-Files strayed more than one hundred miles
had recently been closed, and with its
from Vancouver (a very small Second Unit foray to
turn-of-the-century ambience, offered
Sedona, Arizona excepted). Chris was intent on placing
excellent production value for those
both story and characters in a region dramatically differ-
spooky chase scenes with the Alien
ent than the west coast.
Bounty Hunter.
and
After considering a handful of specific locations
A deal was made at the end of
geographies Columbia and Alberta - among
in British
Season Three allowing us to return to
them the mammoth Mica Dam and Highland Valley open
the ToIko site three months later, as
pit copper mine, the moonscapes of Mount Edziza and
Chris had already indicated that this
Spatsizi Plateau Provincial Parks (too inaccessible), the
location would again be necessary for
Athabasca Tar Sands project and a deserted airbase near
the Season Four opener (which was
part two).
Calgary (too far to travel). Chris' favourite option was the

ToIko Industries burned to the ground Badlands of southern Alberta, but the distance was pro-
in a spectacular blaze one night in late
hibitive and we settled on the arid Kamloops/Ashcroft
1997, but this did not signal the end of t) area as an alternative, knowing only that Chris wanted a
desert.
its use as a The site — by then
location.
nothing more than a huge parking lot I was familiar with this area, having thoroughly scouted
with a single cabin-like office building iton more than one occasion for previous shows and
remaining — was used as an FIV Park commercials. During the 1996 hiatus, a small group flew
in "Bad Blood" (5x12). to Kamloops, rented a vehicle, and embarked on a survey
of the area with the assistance of local film commissioner
Rino Elverhoy. Locations under consideration were an
abandoned army base at Mount Lolo, a derelict prison
laft S = Slan H = Hold T = Tart Tr = Jtn-M
Special Insifuclions site near Kamloops, an unoccupied mental health facility
—NOTE A 2 MINUTE SAFETY MEETING WIU BE HELDON"
SET AT CAU. TIME
at Tranquille, and a collection of overgrown concrete
"•NOTE UVE BEES TO BE USED ON SET MINIMUM CREW
TO WORK WITH BEES WHITE/UGHT COLOURED LONG
-
.

bunkers used as an ammunition depot during the Second

SLEEVED CLOTHING TO BE WORN NO PERFUMES TO BE -

WORN NOTIFY 1ST AID IN ADVANCE OF ANY ALLERGIES World War and currently the Kamloops public works
—NOTE CREW BREAKFAST BUFFET Wia BE SERVED AT yard.
YOUR HOTEL FROM 5 30a TO 6 OOa ANY CREW UNABLE TO
-

RECEIVE BREAKFAST AT HOTEL DUE TO EARLY CALLS

H/M/W, GENNY) Wia BE PROVIDED BREAKFAST FROM
(I E As I recall, the overall response was less than enthusi-
CATERING TRUCK ON LOCATION
astic. In fact, a suggestion was made to curtail the survey
—NOTE KAMLOOPS WEATHER CAN BE EXTREME E VERY
HOT/SUNNY OR COLD/RAINY) PLEASE HAVE APPROPRIATE
(I
and catch an earlier flight back to Vancouver. Of the loca-
SUN/RAIN GEAR (INCLUDING SUNSCREEN SUN GLASSES
HATS & BOOTS NO OPENED TOED SHOES'")
- tions we had surveyed so far, nothing really clicked or
—NOTE: CREW BUS LEAVES HOTEL AT 6:00a SHARP '" justified the expenditure of time and effort required to
(VlflTH THE EXCEPTION OF CALLS NOTED ON BACK) NO -

PERSONAL VEHICLES ON LOCATION transport crew and equipment to Kamloops.

ce Schedule 1 was determined, however, that Chris should see a tiny
Pages 0/N
settlement perched high on a plateau above the North
Thompson River just east of Cache Creek. felt that this 1

Call sheet notes for "Herrenvolk" (4x01).

would make an interesting ghost town while also featur-
ing the desert-like geography of this region. Checking the

118
 SEASON FOUR
schedule of flights back to Vancouver, I reasoned that -

given the 45-minute drive each way - we could still catch Looking for Normal ctp)
the earlier flight home if nothing panned out.
While it may be on the local road maps,
About halfway to Cache Creek, the terrain begins to
the exit sign to Highway 97 between
flatten and the highway more closely follows the river far
Kamloops and Cache Creek is difficult to
below. At this point, huge tracts of farmland emerge,
Which may be just what the inhabi-
spot.
perched dramatically on the plateau between road and
tants of Walhachin, B.C. count on, for this
river. Chris was intrigued by the enormous, oddly-tented
is a town very much at the end of the road.
expanses of land under ginseng cultivation, a somewhat In retrospect, the decision to use
serendipitous discovery since I was familiar with the gin- Walhachin as the shanty town in
seng farms and had not thought them worthy of mention. "Herrenvolk" (4x01) fit perfectly the
Upon our return to Vancouver, location scout Alan mythology which had come to character-
Bartolicwas dispatched to thoroughly photograph the ize The X-Files by Season Four. It was
locations we had picked on the survey. Hence, along with suitably obscure, both in its location and
concrete bunkers, an isolated road set amidst golden its history, and exuded a charming quirki-
rolling hills (the road leading to Mount Lolo), and a small ness upon first blush.
town, a geographic focus for the story emerged. Upon first blush. must confess that, like
I

many others in this business, sometimes I

ignore initial impressions of a client or situ-

SHANTY TOWN ationin an effort to secure a location.
WALHACHIN With respect to location scouting and
managing, the overwhelming sense of
relief which often accompanies the dis-
This tiny settlement owes its isolated existence to the
covery of a visually wonderful location
horrors of the First World War. As the story goes, this
after a particularly stressful or demanding
very arid region

families
To bring water
was originally populated, in the early
1900s, by a group of British remittance
who visualized their
to their land,
own little

they built
men and their
Garden of Eden.
a network of
^ search can itself distort one's sense of
reality, causing some very important

potential problems to be considered

insignificant.
irrigation flukes high on the hillside, the rotting wooden This was not what was thinking as I I

remains of which can still be spotted in places from the sped along Highway 97 under a warm
highway. The soil was fertile and fruit trees grew in July sky on my v\/ay to Walhachin for a
abundance. meeting with key residents about our pros-
When World War began, most of the men
the First pective filming activities. Instead, I hit the
enlisted in the British forces and never returned, leaving brakes hard before pulling a 180 and
their widows behind. The orchards fell into neglect and parking my rental Taurus on the gravel
today the site is home to about one hundred people, a shoulder just east of Savona, a quaint
strange and eccentric collection of humanity (see Looking community on Kamloops Lake which,
for Normal). given the derelict sawmill at the edge of
Several of the houses dotting the dusty main street town, had probably seen more prosper-
were built at the turn of the century and have changed ous days.
little since then. Situated on a narrow strip of land Call professional curiosity or a bad
it

between the river and steeply rising hills, we were habit, but have grown accustomed to
I

scouting wherever go. keep a loaded

impressed by how quickly the "town" ends and scrub
I I

point-and-shoot camera in the car at all

brush begins. Fortuitously (for us), a large tract of land
times for precisely this reason. On this
under ginseng cultivation existed between the bridge (the
day, the object of was a my curiosity
only road access to this town) and the first houses
defunct Texaco gas station — now convert-
approaching town. We were therefore able to "combine"
ed into a residence-cum-garage — which
locations for scheduling purposes, as the shanty town of
sits by itself on a lonely stretch of road, a
the script is road-accessible only through the golden fields.
silent reminder of another era.
a distance of one kilometre away.

119
X Marks the Spot

UNRUHt
Finding a good angle, I brandished my
camera and began tailing photographs. "Psychic photographs" become evidence as a psychotic killer -
Lowering the camera, I crossed the high- who kidnaps young women and lobotomizes them with an ice
way to take some close-ups of the clut- pick - is pursued by Mulder and Scully.
tered front lot, strewn with automotive junk.
man appeared from
Within seconds, a
what would once have been the office.
A few steps behind him, a younger man DRUGSTORE/ ALLEY
followed. put the camera away and pre-
I MAPLE LEAF PHARMACY,
pared to explain myself, as occurred to it
2406 NANAIMO ST., VANCOUVER
me that may well have been an unwant-
I

ed trespasser. Finding a drugstore would seem an easy task but

We exchanged pleasantries and I
almost every store we scouted proposed severe time
explained the camera, saying that was I

restrictions, and on busy streets would

their locations
location scouting for The X-Files and on
have made filming the driveup/car scenes involving rain
my way to Walhachin. "The X-Files! Hell, towers and major street lockups impossible.
you're gonna want to hear this story," the
younger man exclaimed.
"Unruhe" is a German word for "unrest." x:>m*i*.

In a vaguely psychotic manner, he

A variety store in New Westminster was our first
explained that the older man was his choice. Although it required major design modifications

father, a former shipbuilder in the and decorating, the proprietor was willing to close down
Kamloops area. "For Chrissakes, my for a week. But when the building owner was contacted
father's father helped run the railroad to discuss the filming proposal, he demanded exorbitant
through this region." The older man just location fees which he felt were comparable to American
stood there, nodding. rates. The search for a location resumed. When informed

dad.
"But something weird
He designed and
happened
built the first
to
star-
30 about the situation, the variety store proprietor threat-
ened to sue the owner for loss of business.
ship in I960, using his shipbuilding knowl- and with the grace of alien gods, the owner of
Luckily,
edge." He delivered this information with a Maple Leaf Pharmacy, a quaint drugstore in East
poker face borne of absolute conviction. Vancouver, was an enormous fan of the show and on that
This was not the direction in which had I
basis alone he granted us use of the location. Many
expected the conversation to slide. storefronts on the same street as the drugstore were dec-
"Hell, the creators of Star Trek stole his
orated with signage to depict a small American town.
design!" Oh yeah, I thought, looking at my Inside the store, set decorator Shirley inget and her crew
watch for a way
They were after him,
out.
stripped store shelves and relocated goods.
itturned out. As on cue, dad leaned
if
The script called for rain. Naturally there was little con-
over to show me a lump protruding from
cern, but as film day approached, the forecast called for
his curly head of hair. "CIA hitmen," the
continued sunshine and high temperatures. Special effects
son explained. "They missed that time. He
devised a scheme to outfit two cranes mounted with rain
knew too much. He studied levitation with
towers, one crane to service the front of the store and the
a Tibetan master, who taught him that you
didn't need a starship to fly to the stars."
other to shower the rear parking lot.

"Well, that makes sense," I said, smiling For the first time in the history of the show, the crew

as began to look around for a hidden

I
welcomed rain. The cooling effect of the showers made
camera or some indication that \was the I
the heat bearable - even the police officers stood directly
victim of a practical joke. under the rain towers. It was peculiar to see the block of
No such luck. His next \A/ords seemed Nanaimo Street inundated by rain, a contrast to the pre-
more desperate. "And then there was KAL vailing sunshine. Director Rob Bowman's challenge was
Flight 007 in 1984," he sputtered. "He was toavoid the sun while filming the exterior scenes. The
the real target. CIA hitmen again. At the scheduled day was not completed, so Second Unit had to
return to the location to finish interior scenes which

120
 SEASON FOUR
again required full re-dressing by the set dec department.
After two attempts to film on location in the rear parking lastminute he cancelled his seat, but they
lot, the scene was eventually filmed in the parking lot didn'tknow that and blew up the plane
back at the studio. anyway. Blamed it on them damn Soviets,"
he said. By now I was mildly intrigued
with both the story and these two charac-
ters.
At Dad spoke. "Come on In," he
last.

said. show you the documentation and

"I'll

my design for the starship." The son

glanced from his dad to me, nodding vig-
orously. Father and son, standing there In

matching grimy t-shirts, arms crossed

identically.
Dolly grip Peter Wilkie
As amusing as this was, had seen a I

with his gear.

movie called Cold Comfort and had no
Intention of becoming either a hostage or
a corpse in an abandoned gas station on
Highway 97. "I'd like to take your picture," I

ventured. "For my files." The two men

beamed as raised my camera. then
I I

thanked them for the Information and

turned to leave, promising to relay this
information to the show's creator.
"Hell, yes," the son quipped as crossed
CEMETERY I

the highwayand opened the car door.

NORTH VANCOUVER CEMETERY, "Maybe you could use In one of your
LILLOOET RD., NORTH VANCOUVER t) shows. . .
."
It

If I'd listened to that Inner voice, I

Our main location at the cemetery was the mainte-

would have headed back to Kamloops
nance/gravel storage area, a perfect place to hide an RV.
then, grateful for having just received a
The reverse angle from the gravel lot showed the ceme- divlnatory "warning sign." Instead, I

tery, but the ground-level gravestones made it difficult to wheeled the car around and stepped on
tell that the grassy area was a "cemetery." Vertical styro- the accelerator, concerned that my little
foam headstones were randomly positioned throughout detour might actually make me late for my
the cemetery, carefully avoiding existing plaques. During appointment In Walhachin.
the weekend, however, a visitor to a family plot saw the The purpose of my visit was to meet
"tombstones" and was appalled. The visitor called the with the residents of a handful of homes
local newsweekly and condemned use of the cemetery for along the street on which we would be
filming.The front page news headline was our Monday filming. In one case, we would need to
morning wake-up call. Filming proceeded as planned, but access a small house for a camera angle
within a week a moratorium on filming at North Shore out into the street. We would also be
cemeteries was passed in city council. That same week painting this house. The owner lived in
the national newspaper The Globe and Mail published an Kamloops, and had made a deal with
I

article praising the Toronto film industry for providing him and picked up a key the previous
funds for cemetery upkeep. evening. The local community hall was to
be painted and aged as well. A mobile
Later in the season, the local newsweekly,
having been invited to visit The X-Files set,
home further down the road would be
greened out completely.
published a special edition called "Inside The X-
In total, six homes would be directly
Files," and featured North Vancouver as a popular
affected by our activities and deals were
film destination.

121
X Marks the Spot

HOME
made, based on the extent of involve-
ment, with each individual or family. Or so
A small, rural town is home to a clan of deformed inbreeders
Ithought. Arrangements for circus park-
- a mother and her sons - who do everything they can to keep
ing, use of washroom facilities, and provi-
their family line alive.
sion for a lunchroom were also made.
left town feeling confident that most of
I

the details had been dealt with and that POLICE STATION
Walhachin was pretty much ready for its FORT LANGLEY COMMUNITY HALL.
population to double for a day. 9167GLOVER RD., FORT LANGLEY
What
hadn't prepared for were the
I

politicsand chemistry of a small town. A This episode was set in Home, Pennsylvania and
small town which, admit, had come to
I I
required a small-town feel. To this end we scouted for
like very much. First blush. By the time buildings fronting on a main square or courtyard, as this
The X-Files rolled down the main street was where Scully and Mulder's discussion of events in
on a Monday afternoon, someone had this rather sordid case would occur.
decided that the entire town of Walhachin The Fort Langley Community Hall, built in Greek
should be fed from our catering truck. This
Renaissance style, is a large pale yellow clapboard struc-
after residents affected by filming had
ture dating back to I 932. With its stately white columns
already been treated to lunch.
flanking the front entrance, it conveys a sense of history
One old gentleman whose house was in
without being pretentious and was a strong contender
the line of fire — coaxed by a retired
from the beginning, but because of the distance factor
Teamster who happened to live a couple
(approximately forty-five minutes from Vancouver), other
of blocks away — decided to host a drink-
"lesser" choices were considered and discarded. The hall
ing party on his front porch, refusing to
itselfwould have been ideal for the construction of at
move indoors until the production had
least one set to fill out our shooting schedule, but prior
made a substantial contribution to his bar
fridge. Once indoors, the party grew to t> bookings made the three-day art department prep impos-
sible and two sets - the interior of the police station and
include women and small children.
Assistant location manager Ainslie Wiggs, Scully and Mulder's motel rooms - were constructed at the

who had gone over at the request of the nearby Langley Fine Arts School, which was closed for
sound department, was virtually held summer holidays.
hostage (she later claimed her glass of Fort Langley itself is a mix of new and old, so reverse
juice was spiked with vodka) for the better angles had to be carefully picked to maintain the small-
part of two hours. town American illusion. In particular, the fish and chips
Another resident, with whom I had shop across the street - the one that complained loudly
made a cash deal in exchange for allow- about our presence - would most certainly not have
ing our actors to exit her house and walk existed in the real Home.
through her yard, decided that "the money
wasn't the thing" and requested that our
220
set electrician rewire her kitchen for
amp phase
service, as she'd decided to
out the woodstove and go electric. Our
electrician checked her house wiring and
suggested that, given the size of the job, I

Greened out: a number of judicious-

ly placed trees can effectively make
an unwanted house or object
"disappear."

We're '-Home" (4x03).

122
 SEASON FOUR
As a production note, assistant location manager
AinslieWiggs was dispatched to buy fish and chips
for hire a which subseqent-
local contractor, I

the entire crew as 12 noon approached on this very ly a gesture of good faith.
did as

sunny August. Perhaps it was the heat - or the burden Through all this, filming proceeded with
placed on existing fish stocks by a sudden demand for
a sense of urgency, as Baba Ram's
adventure (see The Lost Squadron) had
$250 worth of fish and chips - which caused a harried
caused production to fall behind schedule
cook to reluctantly fill our order before closing up shop
and we now faced the very real possibility
for the remainder of the day.
of running out of daylight before complet-
ing our day's work.
TELIKO When filming was finished, I felt confi-
dent that everyone was happy and that
A West African immigrant from a lost tribe who have no pitu- the show had bent over backwards to
itary glands preys on African American men. removing their accommodate whatever requests were
pigmentation in killing them. made by residents. A problem with the
quality of the repaint on the community
hall — a local painting company had been
DEMOLITION SITE hired — resulted in the hiring of a second
303-305 RAILWAY ST., VANCOUVER subcontractor to fix the job done by the
first, at a considerable cost to us. It should

be noted that, as we had hired both sets

Japan Town - a Vancouver area once known for its of painters based on local recommenda-
Japanese shops and restaurants - is in one of the more tions, any disagreement over job quality
undesirable areas of East Vancouver. The demolition site should ultimately have rested with the
has since been converted into condominiums, in which subcontractor and the hall owners. I

many film community members live, but its former state remained involved only to ensure person-
of disrepair provided perfect conditions for a building in ally that each side got what they had
need of demolition. On a second visit after the location t) been promised and were content that we
had been confirmed, we discovered old electrical boxes had upheld our end of the agreement.
with PCB we found out, no harmful chemi-
labels (but, as I was, therefore, extremely displeased
cals despite the labels). These would undoubtedly result to receive a faxed article from the Vernon
in site inspections and mounds of red tape which could Morning Star on August 19, the headline
delay production. Luckily, a simple call to the property reading "X-Files Fails to Cough Up." In it,

manager resulted in the boxes magically disappearing. two of my Walhachin "contacts" declared
that not only had Ttie X-Files welched on
our agreed deals, but that we were guilty
DEMOTT AVENUE of not paying Vancouver prices for loca-
500 ALEXANDER ST., AND REAR ALLEY, tions. The first assertion was just plain
VANCOUVER fiction, the latter just plain foolish. Some
accusations were so far-fetched that I

Director Jim Charleton requested that the alley south of came wonder to if the locals were per-
Demott Avenue be blocked off to create a dead end. Since haps indulging a bit too much in the local
all streets have remain accessible for emergency vehi-
to cash crop.
cles, construction developed a rolling wall which could be For the record, though, Walhachin is a
placed into position across the alley for picture, then eas- lovely — albeit strange — little town and
ily moved aside. most of the residents extremely good
Vancouver's seedy East Side had a sobering effect on people. Locals were notified of the
air date and all those whose
episode's
the crew. Preparation for filming necessitates street and
sidewalk cleaning and a thorough scan for needles. In
homes appeared on film were mailed a
this alley,an actor was expected to crawl through a hole
VMS copy of the show once aired. it

Whether they had a television or not.

in a wall to reach a yard on the other side. As a mound of

garbage blocked the other side, we requested permission

123
X Marks the Spot
from the owner to remove the garbage at our cost, much
to his disbelief. While filming, was approached by a
1

staff member of a local charity, who asked about the pos-

sibility of donations. We placed a permanent donations
"Reports of my death. . .
."
box in the office and occasional memos resulted in boxes
of clothes being donated to the charity.
More than one person was upset when
word got out that Lone Gunman Frohike After filming "Chinga" (5x10) at the Shop Easy in

was going to "be killed" — a euphemism Port Coquitlam, all the remaining produce, meats,
for written out of the series — at the con- and canned goods were packaged, loaded onto a
clusion of "Musings of a Cigarette five-ton, and dropped off at the charity. The butcher
Smoking Man" (4x07). Tom Braidwood cut and wrapped a side of beef which was delivered
would still have had his job as first assis- the following day.
tant director, but the glamour of being
on-screen would be gone.
Not surprisingly, many crew members
THE FIELD WHERE DIED I

had strong feelings about this turn of

events, since the production draft of the
Mulder discovers he shares a past life - from the Civil War era
script, written by Glen Morgan and direct-
- with a woman who is part of a doomsday religious cult.
ed by Jim Wong, clearly described
hands of Cigarette
Frohike's death at the
Smoking Man. As one production source SANGUINARIUM
later recalled, "Jim Wong instructed the
Second Unit crew to shoot it both ways, A cosmetic surgery clinic is the site of a series of deaths.
presumably without Chris' blessing. CSM, Although they appear to be due to medical misconduct, they
therefore, shot Frohike, and didn't shoot are in fact due to the efforts of a man who, through human
Frohike.
The following morning when Chris
found out what had transpired, he was
V sacrifice, is eternally youthful.

angry because he'd already decided not H O S P TA L

I

to kill off Frohike. He told production to

call the film processing lab and instruct
MOUNT SAINT JOSEPH'S HOSPITAL,
3080 PRINCE EDWARD ST., VANCOUVER
them to not print the dallies showing
Frohike's death. Chris wanted to make For this episode, our priority was to find a hospital
sure no one viewed that footage.
location with an emergency room we could access (most
emergencies are active twenty-four hours a day) and
ancillary medical rooms. iVIount Saint Joseph's had
recently made available the entire second floor plus their
day surgery room which could easily double as an emer-
gency room and was completely dressed, allowing us the
rare opportunity to just point the cameras and shoot. The
most difficult aspect of filming at the hospital was
refraining from cellular phone use, which could have
affected hospital instruments.

Assistant location manager Ainslie S. Wiggs MUSINGS OF A CIGARETTE

on location in Walhachin. SMOKING MAN

The history of the Cigarette Smoking Man is revealed. CSM is

a powerful man, controlling everything from elections to politi-

cal assassinations to award ceremonies, and Super Bowls. He's

also a would-be author

124
 SEASON FOU R
TEXAS BOOK DEPOSITORY
11 90 HOMER ST. VANCOUVER

If you believe what you see on television, then Oswald

and Ray were simply hired guns for a shadowy figure

known as Cigarette Smoking Man, the real culprit behind
most of the great triumphs and tragedies of the 20th
century.
In an attempt to recreate the |FK assassination, much
research was done on what Deeley Plaza looked like in

1963. We examined the Zapruder footage and undertook

a thorough discussion of existing conspiracy theories.
Suffice to say that Deeley Plaza, which is itself a very
different place today, never resembled anything in the
Vancouver area. Shots were therefore constructed around
what could be isolated to pass for the real thing.
We were fortunate in finding an old three-storey build-
ing on the edge of Yaletown which actually bore an eerie
resemblance to the Texas Book Depository of that era, Chris and William B. Davis (Cigarette Smoking

both inside and out. Currently home to a garment manu- Man) at the CM Place finale.

facturing business, the top floors of the building served as

storage space. The brick walls and massive post and
beam construction certainly gave the illusion of a period
set.Even the window treatments were a reasonable
match. X)
Unfortunately, this building was far from any location
resembling a plaza and views from these windows were
completely wrong. So POVs of the Presidential motorcade
were filmed in a parking lot at General Motors (CM) Place
and from a pedestrian overpass in a nearby park.

Jackie O. never looked so good. Associate cast-

ing director Heike Brandstatter was called upon
to don the infamous lackie Kennedy wardrobe
for the limo seen in "Musings of a Cigarette
Smoking Man" (4x07). The resemblance was
astounding, if not unnerving.

The Kennedy motorcade at GM Place ("Musings of a Cigarette

Smoking Man" (4x07)).

125
X Marks the Spot

DEELEY PLAZA/THE GRASSY KNOLL

ANDY LIVINGSTONE PARK,
VANCOUVER
Magic hour: also known as "golden
hour" or "I'heure bleu"; the short Recreating a suitable match for a 1963 stretch Lincoln
period of time just after sunrise and convertible was no easy task for picture vehicle handler
just before sunset when the sun Nigel Habgood. Finding a believable location to play as
casts the softest light of the day. Deeley Plaza was similarly problematic. Thanks go to the
Vancouver Parks Board for creating this park in time for
its use on The X-Files.

After an initial location scout and much discussion, it

The Lost Squadron ctp) was decided to film the assasination sequence from
In the the lost squadron of his-
spirit of
overhead, thereby eliminating the background problems
torical lore. The X-Files also has a story to associated with time and place. A camera position was
add to the body of accumulated myth. It is identified atop a pedestrian overpass in this newly-con-

the enigma of the lost van. We had ven- structed urban park. Other angles were "cheated" using
tured out of the Lower Mainland for the a camera crane in a parking lot at adjacent CM Place.
first time in more than three years and In accordance with the "second shooter" theory, low-

chosen the Kamloops-Ashcroft angle shots from the storm drain were contrived on the
corridor as a suitably arid locale to kick ring road around GM Place.
off with the Season Four opener,

"Herrenvolk."
It was late July 1 996 and it was hot.
After considerable organization, the
shooting crew had assembled on a bluff

above the North Thompson River just out-

side the town of Walhachin, B.C. From
there, we had a breathtaking view of the
river far below and acre upon acre of gin-
seng under cultivation to the north and
west. With us was a large contingent of
"trained" bees and their handlers.
Director Bob Goodwin wanted to take
advantage of the warm light of magic
hour to film the opening shots of the first
The fourth shooter
scene, so the cre\N had assembled here
("Musings of a
before sunrise after having been shuttled
Cigarette Smoking
in buses from their hotels in Kamloops,
Man" (4x07)).
a forty-five minute drive away.
The cast was assembled and the PAPER HEARTS
scene blocked for camera. But there was
one problem. One big problem. Mulder's belief that his sister was abducted by aliens is called
The shuttle van carrying the hair, make- into question when serial killer John Lee Roche suggests that
up, and wardrobe departments — as well
Samantha may actually have been one of his victims.
as third assistant director Michelle Dutka
— had gone missing. Cellular telephone BUS GRAVEYARD
reception in that area was spotty at best,
UNITED AUTO WRECKERS.
and of no use in our situation. Trunk 10395 SCOTT RD., SURREY
radios proved similarly useless.
What we did know, standing on that Inpreparation for Expo '86 in Vancouver, the British
bluff as the sun climbed higher and
Columbia government replaced existing transit buses with

126
 SEASON FOU R
more modern ones. The old buses, still in excellent oper-
ating condition, were sold for a song and are stored in
higher into the pale blue sky, was that
Surrey.
the van had left Kamloops on time.
Months before we ever needed this location, producer
From her makeshift production office in
J. P. Finn suggested we scout it with thoughts of taking
a Kamloops hotel, production co-ordlna-
advantage of this unique location. Photos were taken and tor Anita Truelove had confirmed that
shipped to the writers in L.A., but it was not used until much. Beside herself with worry, she
this episode, and even then the scene was not long had phoned the local hospital as well as
enough to warrant a full day of filming. the RCMP, fearing the van had met with
an accident. What we could not know
was that driver Baba Ram had missed
the Highway 97 exit to Cache Creek
and was now on the Coquihalla High-
way bound for Vancouver.

H
He had evidently realized his error
but, rather than turn around and back-
v\^,_
k .-m-r.*^ „,,;,
.

.(-
track, had made the decision to take the

mm
w^UgKM
\iZ*.j.^
'i- .

.a»«iig|ilt|B|
Logan Lake Road, a gravel road which
connects the Coquihalla Highway with
Ashcroft just north of Merritt. The logic
of his decision remains unclear to this

day. When the missing van finally

The bus graveyard in Surrey, B.C. used in "Paper Hearts" (4x08). arrived — almost three hours late for set
call — Goodwin exhibited amazing
considering his shotlist had
restraint,

TUNGUSKA t been seriously compromised by Baba's

tardiness. That considered,
ofan exaggeration to say that Bob had
it's not much

An extraterrestrial rock is discovered to be carrying the alien homicide on his mind that morning.
black oil. Mulder and Krycek trace the rock's origin to Oddly enough, Baba did have the
Tungaska, Russia, where they are captured and incarcerated in presence of mind to stop in Ashcroft
a gulag. Krycek talks his way out, but Mulder is infected with long enough to pick up a sandwich and
the black oil. All the while, Scully is stalling a senate subcom- a soft drink before continuing on. When
mittee, who are wondering just where Mulder is. questioned about the half-eaten sand-
wich he still clutched in his hand as the
van pulled up to set in a cloud of dust,
he quipped that it had been a "damn
long drive — I got really hungry."

The senate chamber built on a sound stage for "Tunguska" A Teamster collective: (left to right) Mitch,

(4x09) and "Terma" (4x10). Marty, and Baba.

127
X Marks the Spot

RURAL RUSSIAN WORKCAMP

GRAVEL PIT, SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION FOREST,
NORTH VANCOUVER

While we can be grateful that the gulags and work-

camps of the Cold War-era Soviet Union are a long way
away, location managers remain ever grateful that the
Seymour Demonstration Forest is a mere twenty-five
minutes from downtown Vancouver.
Given the stark landscape demanded by this script,
the gravel pit seemed like the natural choice for these
scenes. A section of barbed wire fencing was laid in and a
The gravel doubled as both a
pit
navigable path identified for the horsemen. The weather -
UFO crashsite on "Fallen Angel" suitably wet and bleak during filming - added an ominous
(1x09) and as a graveyard for burn-
sense of realism, while making all that rock and gravel
ing Ladas In the Khazikstan Forest
appear even more desolate and ominous.
during "Patient X" (5x13).
The gravel doubled as both a UFO crashsite on
pit
"Fallen Angel" (1x09) and as a graveyard for
burning Ladas in the Khazikstan Forest during
"Patient X" (5x13).
On the day of filming, director Kim Manners arrived on
set, took one look at the rubber razor wire fence beneath
which David and Nick would later crawl, and demanded
it be replaced with the Gary Allen
real thing. Art director

recalled the moment. "We decided on fake razor wire as a

t> safety precaution, mostly for David. But Kim hated it, and
he had a point. It really did look phony." The scramble
began to fulfill Kim's request and not hold up production.
"The rest of the day," Gary continued, "was spent keep-
Another dead body. ing both actors and crew at least six feet away from that
awful stuff. David absolutely hated the whole idea."

SKINNER'S APARTMENT
A split-level penthouse in Viva
Tower (Suite 1 706) played as a
VIVA TOWER, SUITE 1708, 1311 HOWE ST.

high-end "madam's" condominium

VANCOUVER
in "Avatar" (3x21), an episode
The issue here was not so much in finding an apartment
which changed Skinner's concept
for Assistant Director Skinner, but in finding a balcony at
of "safe sex." Three blocks to the
least ten storeys high from which Alex Krycek - having
northeast, at 1180 Richards Street,
thrown an assailant to his death - could dangle. The cam-
is Skinner's old apartment, where
era was to look straight down to the street, which created
he moved after separating from his
a problem in that such a view from almost any other
wife just prior to "Avatar." ;

office tower or highrise in town was at least partially

obstructed by protruding lower balconies, terraces, or
street-level awnings.
Viva Towerwas chosen because it fit the above require-
ments and because of the size of its suites. Very strict
filming guidelines meant that specific hours of the day
were designated for elevator use. Call times, equipment

128
 SEASON FOU R
load-ins, and exterior filming activities were carefully
orchestrated around these restrictions. In such instances,
the most stressful parts of the day for the locations
department were load-in and wrap-out as, once on the
seventeenth floor, the crew remained self-contained, if
not subdued.
Hangin' With the Home Boys (tp)

Care was taken not to reveal either False Creek or We returned to an old farmhouse —
English Bay in the background, ironic given the stunning first seen in "Aubrey" (2x12) — to film
vistas offered from this suite. We were, after all, in the what would become the most infamous
D.C. area. Strictly speaking, this apartment was far more of all X-Files shows, "Home" (4x03).

luxurious than would befit a senior FBI agent (unless they Follow-ing a brief review of the "Aubrey"
were "on the take"), and the art department went to some episode and a discussion with the art
lengths installing wall plugs to eliminate several rooms, department, it was decided that be-
effectively shrinking the true size and opulence of this cause we had never seen this house
suite. from its northern or western exposures,
As Skinner exits the foyer, the name Viva Tower is fea- featuring it again would not be problem-

tured prominently above the main entrance. From the atic, considering both the passage of
time (almost two years) and our intent
sidewalk on the north side of the building, gaze up seven-
to paint and age the entire house to
teen floors to the northwest corner balcony and imagine
resemble a remnant of the Civil War era.
yourself as Nick Lea hanging by a handcuff from the rail-
The paint department went to work,
ing as he pulls stuntman Tony Morelli over the side.
applying fresh coats of cool grey to
replace the existing warm yellow hues.
SEEDY INDUSTRIAL AREA (FLUSHING, QUEENS) The was amazing. Next, the
difference
200-BLOCK OF NORTHERN AVE. tenants were moved out. The house
VANCOUVER was emptied of furniture and redressed

DirectorKim Manners envisioned a rundown industrial

t) in a style evocative
service to the house
of that era, hydro
was dropped, and
area where old warehouses and loading docks lined both telephone poles removed to add
sides of the street, not unlike the fictional New York set- authenticity. then hired the farmer
I who
ting. leased the adjacent fields to create the
The placement of a dozen trailer
script called for the baseball pitch where the boys would
units along one side of the street and a warehouse oppo- ultimately make a startling discovery at

site in which to film a SWAT siege. Another key require- home plate.An exterminator was
ment was the ability to stage gunfire late into the night
without disturbing residents. The loading docks along
Hamilton and IVlainland Streets in Yaletown had a great
look, but were too cramped to park our rigs and, in any

case, unsuitable for late-night filming due to the growing

number of lofts and condos being built in converted
warehouses. Ballantyne Pier - before its conversion to a
cruiseship facility in the early 1990s - would also have
worked well.
The area we chose was light industrial, bordering on a
railyard. Businesses in the line of fire included a tile man-
and several
ufacturer, a glass cutter, a steel fabricator,
artist/woodworkers' studios, all of whom locked up and Kim Manners directing.

went home by 7 p.m. The issue became one of access

and control for the prep crews, in particular picture vehi-
cle handler Nigel Habgood's container delivery schedule.
The ground was carefully marked out in order to spot

129
X Marks the Spot

each container as quickly as possible once 5 p.m. rolled

around.
employed to remove a large and pesky Call-time was set for dusk, with the crew working
nest of wasps which our greens through the night and wrapping at dawn as businesses
department had the displeasure of were about to open for the day. Late into the night, and
stumbling upon while building a pigpen. with steam rising in a back-lit effect which caught a
The set dec department next went to mangy dog wandering through the foreground across wet
\A?ork, skillfully littering the yard with the pavement, an excited Kim looked sideways at director of
carcasses of period vehicles, pieces of photography John loffin and declared that this was "a
farm equipment, and bric-a-brac, creat- bitchin', absolutely bitchin' set," a phrase which became
ing a homestead befitting the horrifying a Manners trademark.
Peacock family.
Moments before sunrise, Kim - who was suffering from
The property sat next to a major rail
laryngitis and had by now lost his voice - looked over at
line and freight schedules were
first assistant director Vladimir Stefoff and whispered,
obtained days relevant to filming
for the
"Let's call it, bud," then flopped into a waiting van for the
so that we could plan to work around
ride back to his hotel.
disruptions. Air traffic from Boundary
Bay airport — mostly in the form of fly-
ing schools practicing circuits in the air- TERMA
space above us — was more problem-
atic for our sound department, since air Mulder escapes from the gulag and back to the U.S. as a
traffic safety precluded them from prac- former KGB assassin comes out of retirement to destroy all

ticing elsewhere. evidence of the rock and the black oil.

Based loosely on a startling feature

documentary called My Brother's
RUSSIAN PRISON
Keeper, this episode aired once and
only once on network television.
Ho\A/ever, it remains one of my person-
al favourites. So much so that when I
V STANLEY PARK WORKS YARD, OFF PIPELINE
RD., STANLEY PARK, VANCOUVER

There were hints of a Russian prison in the previous

received a request from a francophone
episode, giving us a head start on finding locations. The
school in the Kootenays for a donation
of X-Files memorabilia to be used as abandoned Vocational Institute in Maple Ridge was the
awards in their film festival competition, first candidate even though it was situated out of the

Isent them a fully revised script for studio zone. Photos of the institute were couriered to the
"Home," autographed and dedicated by L.A. writers and it was expected that their writing would
director Kim Manners. reflect the location. After reading the script, it was clear
that the institute was entirely inappropriate: a more
rustic, derelict, makeshift, uninhabitable location would
be far more suitable. The essential ingredient was the dirt

roads. The combination of run-down buildings and dirt

proved to be a difficult find. After an exhaustive search,

the idea of the Stanley Parks Works Yard surfaced. Other
than the lack of dirt, the location was perfect - a motley
group of barrack-type buildings hemmed in by wire mesh
fencing.
greensman Frank Haddad ordered $40,000
initially,

worth mud. When Fox vice-president of pro-

of potential
duction Charlie Goldstein got wind of the cost, the num-
ber of truckloads was halved. Three production assistants
were hired to monitor traffic through the works yard
while scores of semi-trucks dumped tons of dirt onto the

130
 SEASON FOU R
roads. At the end of filming the dirt was reclaimed by the
Park. Frank had shrewdly ordered a quality of dirt that Trailer Love
would be useful to the Parks, thereby avoiding the cost of
The parking of circus and work
removing it from the site. trucks always a prime concern when
Is
The 400 cubic feet of much-needed dirt became considering the choice of locations
mud when the rains came. from a logistical perspective.
Sometimes the simple task of restoring a location to its As the show "grew," so did the crew.
original state can take several months. In this case, the And so did the armada of production
painters made several trips to the works yard, but the support vehicles. Bigger, in this case,
paint wouldn't adhere because of the weather. Finally, on was not always better. Everything had
a glorious spring day four months later, paint touch-ups to be parked somewhere, with virtually
were completed. Well into Season Five, assistant location every department wanting their truck.
manager Rick Fearon, armed with a can of "Goof Off," or trailer parked as close to set as
removed some adhesive inadvertently left on several possible.
buildings, finally deleting the last remnants of "Terma" During Season One, both David and
(4x10). Gillian were assigned top-of-the-line
twenty-six-foot trailers. For Season
Three, David acquired a twenty-eight-
foot Airstream trailer (complete with
hardwood floors). Transportation
co-ordinator Bob Bowe recalls that
"by late in Season Four, the Airstream
was gone, replaced by a double pop-
out thirty-foot King of the Road unit.
Which is what Gillian got — factory
direct — at the beginning of Season

X) Five." With a price tag of just over

$100,000 CDN each, these trailers
were both spacious and luxurious,
but less than practical.
The units were problematic for two
Louisa sits outside a cabin in the Seymour Demonstration Forest that reasons. Not only were they long, but it

doubled as the rural home of a Russian family in "Terma" (4x10). was technically against the law to use
The X-Files shot in the Seymour Demonstration Forest on more than them in their pop-out capacity on city
twenty-four occassions (not including Second Unit). streets,except where one side or the
other could be extended over a grass
median bordering a sidewalk. They
were, after all, recreational vehicles
designed use in RV parks.
for
The potential danger of another
vehicle crashing into David or Gillian's
living room — and the associated liabili-

ty risk for the production company —

should have precluded any attempt to
use them in their full capacity on
residential or downtown locations, but
they were a constant concern for
locations, particularly where a driver-
operator eager to please a "star"
showed little or no regard for either
common sense or the law.

131
X Marks the Spot

FOREST OIL WELL

STOKES GRAVEL PIT, SOUTH SURREY

Caught in the Act ctp) The tireless search for an Alaskan forest, where an oil

wellwould explode into a column of fire, culminated at a

We were filming Assistant Director
Skinner's apartment for "Tunguska"
grave! pit in Surrey. Special effects co-ordinator Dave
Gauthier and traversed the landscape in search of an
(4x09) tn a residential high-rise when i

trainee assistant location manager ideal location. We even travelled to a forest area near
Michael Bobroff spotted a naked cou- Mission, B.C., where Fire Storm was filming, to get a sense

ple engaging in an erotic act in their of the magnitude of the fire and the equipment and
apartment across the street. Using only access required to achieve the effect. After scouting
a grand piano for a prop, and with a potential locations in Mission, Maple Ridge, and North
floor-to-ceiling picture window providing Vancouver, we ended up in South Surrey. The Stokes Pit

an unrestricted view, most of the shoot- offered a gravel field bounded by a border of deciduous
ing crew — myself included — were trees, which not only provided perfect vistas, but easily
soon assembled in the kitchen to watch accommodated special effects requirements to rig
the energetic sexual ballet. propane lines and hide their equipment behind the trees.
We never knew whether they \A/ere Unit parking was also easily disguised by the trees. To
performing for the cast and crew of achieve the desired effect of oil spewing from the well,
The X-Files or the scene was simply a special effects proposed the environmentally-friendly
case of wanton lust transcending the ingredients of water, syrup, and a touch of black acrylic,
boundaries of modesty. In any case, at which relieved local environmentalists. The water table at
thatmoment on that day, their home Stokes Pit is very low, and the impact of polluting agents
movie was certainly more interesting on the drainage system was a major concern.
than our TV show.
t During filming, thirteen production assistants, six
police officers, and six security guards formed a
gauntlet around the site to ensure that absolutely
no-one crossed the treed boundaries of the site
during this day scene.
Second Unit actually set up and filmed the explosion.

[L MUNDO GIRA
In a migrant workers' shanty town in California, a fungal
growth of extraterrestrial origin infects the community, leading
the residents to believe they are being terrorized by a legendary
monster, El Chupacabra.
^4.

TRUCKSTOP
320 SEYMOUR BLVD., NORTH VANCOUVER
The migrant worker's shantytown, <:onipktc
with snow, in "San loaquin, CA" Director Tucker Gates was not particularly pleased with
("ElMundo Cira" (4x11)).
the idea of duplicating California's dry and predominantly
San loaquin Valley in the Lower Mainland in
flat

November. That said, we chose locations as carefully as

possible, avoiding anything that looked like a rainforest.
The snow, which did fall during this shoot, was another
story.

132
 SEASON FOU R
The truckstop needed to be vast enough to accommo-
date the manoeuvering of a dozen or more tractor-trailer
units, as a storypoint here involved a cat-and-mouse
game between Mulder, an INS agent, and Eladio Buente.
We chose a tiny gas bar in the middle of a very large
parking lot owned by the Squamish Native band of North

Vancouver.
A nondescript gas booth was transformed by the art
and construction departments with the aid of a large
revolving "gas" sign and a fa?ade. The Squamish band
requested that one set of pumps remain open at all times
during filming.
The day of filming here was cold but clear, and proba-
bly the best weather of this entire episode. While filming
other scenes at the Woodlands Hospital site (a lab, a
morgue, an INS processing facility) and near the Boundary

Bay Airport (our migrant workers camp), it snowed. Which

meant many crew members running around with shovels,
brooms, rakes, and tiger torches, trying to recreate a
more believable Fresno winter.

D
The Goat Sucker strikes ("El Mundo Cira" (4x11)).

KADDISH church attic built on set for "Kaddish" (4x12)

After anumber of anti-semites turn up dead in Brooklyn,

Mulder posits that a golem - a man-made creature from Jewish
folklore - is responsible for the killings.

EXTERIOR WEISS APARTMENT/COPYSHOP/INTERIOR MARKET

WINTERS HOTEL, 200 ABBOTT ST.
VANCOUVER
Gastown is the only area in Vancouver that even
remotely resembles residential Queens in New York.
The Winter's Hotel was selected to be the exterior of the
Weiss apartment, with the provision that the neon sign
above the door entrance be removed. After being told
that the costs for its removal were prohibitive, director
Kim Manners said that he would merely move the camera
another five feet to avoid the sign.
133
X Marks the Spot

SYNAGOGUE
SHAUGHNESSY HEIGHTS UNITED CHURCH.
1550 WEST 33RD AVE., VANCOUVER

The gothic interior and stained glass windows of this

church resembled many New York synagogues. This
interior to be one of production designer Graeme
proved
IVlurray's most intricate designs and construction co-
ordinator Rob IViaier's most satisfying accomplishments,
while exceeding Kim's expectations. It was the most
traditional and ornate edifice created on the show.
Shirley Inget's set dec department dressed the pews,
adorned the altar, changed the lighting fixtures, and
spread several thousand square feet of specially imported
red carpet on the floor. One entire wall of stained glass
windows were blocked in by the carpenters and all the
walls were painted. Given the extent of prep, crews
needed exclusive use of the hall to complete the transfor-
mation, and the church was booked for more than two
weeks.
Unbeknownst to any of us, other groups had booked
This Philly Cheese Steak Shack events during the same time. Much to our surprise, we
bad customers the next day learned that a local symphony booked one evening a
("Never Again" (4x13)). week and several other groups required the
for rehearsal,
space on different evenings during our rental. With some
clever organizing, and a few donations, alternate venues
t) were found for each group, although providing alternative
venues proved as difficult as scouting for specific scripted
locations. More than five location crew members were
needed.

NEVER AGAIN

As Mulder takes a vacation, Scully gets entangled with a

recently-divorced man, whose new tattoo seems to be spurring
him towards acts of violence and murder.

Built on location. Made to order

("Never Again" (4x13)).
HARD EIGHT LOUNGE
SAMOO PUB, 315 CARRALL ST.
VANCOUVER
Production designer Graeme Murray decided that the
lounge needed something unique - a circular bar, perhaps
- and so began the hunt.
it ended in a rather colourful bar in a crime-ridden

neighbourhood, and we needed to provide the production

crew with a genuine police guard for the duration of
filming. Bewildered patrons, many of whom seemed to
"set up shop" in the washroom and who might have been

134
 SEASON FOUR
quick to turn tail and disappear at the first sign of a
uniform, merely grumbled about their loss of (likely illicit)

business and went elsewhere. Beyond a very thorough A Plane, a Car, 8e a Whole
cleaning of the premises before the arrival of the prep Lotta Lights (tp)

crew and the removal of a couple of booths to accommo- Very seldom do scripts for episodic
date an enlarged dance floor, very little was done to television involve trains, planes, or ships.
enhance the appearance of this watering hole. There are two very good reasons for this:
The exterior of the Hard Eight Lounge was created in a time and money. Given the logistics and
nearby alcove adjoining an Army & Navy department preparation involved in co-ordinating film-
store. Consisting of little more than a construction flat ingaround such big-ticket items, there is
and a set of double doors festooned with a neon sign, its seldom enough time to safely and ade-
sudden (and rather convincing) presence one morning quately utilize them. Similarly, the relative-

confused more than one denizen of the streets. A security ly small budgets on which most television
guard was subsequently posted to ward off thirsty series must operate preclude the

customers. possibility, since the rental of a train or an

airplane and the attending personnel is,
This pub is within spitting distance of the
for the most part, prohibitive.
iVIeatmarket Restaurant, which doubled as
Having said this. The X-Files has done
Dunaway's Pub ( xOI ), a D.C. coffee shop (3x 5)
1 1

all three. "Tempus Fugit" (episode 4x17)

and the Hoot Owl Bar (5x 5). 1

represented part one of a two-parter

Because of the angles and sightlines necessary to make
("Max" was part two) in which a recurring
specific scenes work, the Philly Cheese Steak Shack and the
character — Max — is killed when the pas-
exterior of the Russian Market were built in parking lots
senger aircraft he is flying is mysteriously
across the street from one another in the 0-block of West
contacted by a UFO
and crashes. In the
Cordova Street. The Tattoo Parlour was constructed in an
story, Mulder and Scully speed down an
empty retail space at 45 West Cordova Street. Hence, it
airport run\A/ay at night in an attempt to
was possible to cheat camera angles so that the exterior
fa?ade of the Hard Eight Lounge was visible from inside t) evade their adversaries, and narrowly
miss colliding with a large, low-flying
the Tattoo Parlour while the exterior fagade of the Russian
aircraft.
Market was clearly visible from the Philly Cheese Steak
A prior relationship with Abbotsford
Shack. The interior of the Russian Market was shot around
Airport Manager Mike Colmant certainly
the corner at 209 Abbott Street in a completely redressed
put us in the comfort zone, but a lot of
convenience store called the Only Stop.
planning was necessary in terms of shut-
This trick of creative geography allowed production to
ting down a runway and transporting our
remain within one block of several locations for three full
Second Unit crew from a staging area to
days, thereby maximizing hours of production versus
our designated zone, choreographing the
hours of travel between locations.
action, and prelighting 1 ,000 feet of tar-

mac. As best boy Bill Kassis recalled, the

latter was completed during a one-day
LEONARD BETTS
prelight using thirty 4K pars, eight 18Ks,

When a headless corpse walks out of a morgue, Scully and and a dozen generator units. "And that,"
Mulder pursue a man who consumes cancerous tissue from his added director of photography Attila
victims in order to regenerate himself. Szalay, "was enough to give my light
meter a reading of 'E,' as in, 'not enough
light.'" Similarly, three Stinger cranes and
THREE RIVERS HOSPITAL/ALLEGHENY HOSPITAL two condors were placed at various points
WOODLANDS HOSPITAL SITE, along the route. A muscolight — a portable
9 EAST COLUMBIA ST., NEW WESTMINSTER lighting unit carrying nine 12K HMI lights
resembling the lights used in athletic sta-
This episode proved to be a challenging one to
diums — was imported from Los Angeles.
organize. All locations, including scenes of an intersection
crash and car explosion, had to be prepared and

135
X Marks the Spot
confirmed for filming before the Christmas hiatus and
available immediately upon our return in the new year.
Eimo: an unmanned, remote To consolidate the exhaustive list of locations, two
camera, typically used In
hospital exteriors and two lab interiors were filmed at
stunts and special effects Woodlands, at what was commonly referred to as Studio
set-ups involving a risk to
Four.
camera operators.
The big question the crew had about this episode
was: how did Betts get around without his head?

INTERSECTION CRASH
Both muscollght and lighting cranes had
to be carefully placed in the threshold of
INTERSECTION OF BURRARD AND
HASTINGS STS., VANCOUVER
the runway with special attention given to
the soft condition of the grass field, since
The ambulance crash was one of the show's most
it had been raining heavily for some days ambitious and expensive "vehicle driving" scenes. Filmed
prior. Similarly, cranes could be moved
downtown in the heart of the financial district among the
into position but not raised until shortly
high-rise canyon, it involved a truck heading northbound
before filming, and their heights in relation
on Burrard and colliding with the ambulance heading
to the runway carefully monitored. In all,
west on Hastings Street. Six city blocks were reserved to
twenty-one pieces of rolling stock were
stage the film action and four blocks of curb parking
brought in for this Second Unit event.
accommodated our work trucks, lighting cranes, and
Even with the runway closed, Transport
holding areas for picture cars.
Canada regulations were strictly observed
in the event of an emergency landing or a
Just after 6 p.m. on a cold January evening, the trucks
late-night straggler, unaware of our pres- began to arrive. So did representatives of the B.C. Film
ence and attempting to land. To this end,
notams were issued well in advance of
filming to advise anyone flying in the
t Commission and the City of Vancouver, ten police
officers, an ambulance and fire truck on stand-by, and

thirty-two production assistants. A number of lights were

positioned on the rooftops of neighbouring high-rise
vicinity of our presence. Two meetings,
including director Rob Bowman as well as buildings. Each lighting position required a separate
producers and necessary department generator and a production assistant to guard the power
heads, were held at the airport. The pilot cables dangling off the rooftop, and each building
of the DC-6, who represented the owners required in-house security to provide roof access. For the
of the plane, was also in attendance. The main crash scene, four cameras and three Eimos recorded
Abbotsford Airport was chosen as a loca- the event.
tionbecause of the runway length and As a precautionary measure, bales of hay were
because the principal tenant had the nec- propped up against the Marine Building, one of
essary equipment and expertise on-site to Vancouver's most refined heritage high-rises. :>

Notam: an aircraft advisory.

Overages: unexpected cost over-

Leonard Betts. With his head ("Leonard Betts" (4x14)).

136
 SEASON FOU R
Water trucks waited for the call for a final street wet
down, but due to freezing temperatures it was cancelled.
At 3 a.m., Leonard Betts lost his head. So did producer
J. P. Finn once he discovered the overages associated with
the scene.
POV; point of view.

accommodate our request. Our pilot

was a seasoned veteran of water-
bombers, which made him a natural
choice forextreme low-level flying.
Wind conditions vi/ould be the deciding
Leonard Betts (4x14) lost his head over this crash. factor, with either no wind or a constant
headwind being most suitable to main-
taining controlled speed and altitude.
All said, the pilot practiced his runs for
several days prior to filming.
On the night of filming, gusting winds
and rain greeted the production crew.
After a brief meeting, it was decided to

proceed with caution. Several cameras

— most of them remote — were placed
at various key points according to

X) Bowman's
involved a
shotlist.
POV -
The money shots
from inside Scully
and Mulder's sedan - of the DC-6 flying
directly at them and missing them by a
few feet. For safety reasons, we shot
this in cutsand used long lenses
where necessary, since any thought of
putting a human being in the sedan
while the plane made its closest pass
Traffic lock-up before the "Leonard Betts" (4x14) crash.
was nixed during initial meetings.
This proved an extremely wise decl-
MEMENTO MORI
Scully, diagnosed with cancer, comes in contact with a group of
women (MUFON), all implanted, all suffering from cancer.
With the aid of a clone, and the Lone Gunmen, Mulder Money shots: in this case, those
infiltrates a fertility clinic, where he finds ova from women, shots which convey "jeopardy,"
including Scully's. and sell the scene.

LABS AND HOSPITAL ROOMS

WOODLANDS HOSPITAL,
NEW WESTMINSTER
By the middle of Season Three, we were looking for a
site to replace Crease Clinic at Riverview Hospital, which

137
X Marks the Spot
had become very busy with other film productions and
sion, since on the pass the plane
first
increasingly difficult to book. For years, the Woodlands
canne in low over the parked sedan
Hospital site - a large and aging complex comprised of
and the landing gear actually "contact-
almost a dozen buildings, cottages, workshops, and
ed" the roof of the car, running a two-
foot crease down the length of the roof
greenhouses - had provided the film industry with one
and exploding the front and rear wind- vacant building, the Centre Building, as a location.
shields. From my position more than Unheated and without water, it was far from ideal.
1 ,000 feet away, it was obvious that Nonetheless, The X-Files had transformed it into a prison
something had happened. Just what and hospital for "F. Emasculata" (2x22).
was unclear until Second Unit location As luck would have it, Woodlands Hospital began clos-
manager Rob Murdoch and his assis- ing down other buildings and cottages early in 1996, and
tant Sarah Done — who had been at we were first in line to make use of this newfound cache
the other end of the runway — arrived of locations. Under the administrative eye of British
with Mike Colmant to inform us of a Columbia Buildings Corporation's joy Bissonnette, we
"small accident." Or perhaps not so would receive exclusive access to this site for a full sea-
small. son and a half, filming scenes for twenty-one separate
An individual sitting in the car would episodes in virtually every available room, ward, office,
almost certainly have been killed or hallway, shop, and warehouse. BCBC was more than
sustained serious injury. It was also happy with our organization and performance, and the
extremely fortunate that the plane's amount of filming days we provided was about as much
landing gear had not hooked onto the as any company not in the movie business could manage.
car, as would have flipped
this likely
The list of locations and sets for "IViemento Mori" was
the plane end over end and sent it
lengthy, and with vacant stage space at a premium, we
crashing to the runway. The "accident"
decided to carry as many sets as possible to the
was blamed on a sudden change in
Woodlands site. To this end, four different buildings were
wind velocity. An identical second
used to create a dozen different sets, including an x-ray
sedan was brought in to replace the
wreck and filming continued throughout
t) lab, Scully's hospital room, a research facility and fertility

an incubator room, a communications tunnel, and a

clinic,
the night and without further incident,
were also filmed here.
bio-secure room. Exteriors
although the pilot chose to stay well off
the deck for the remainder of the shoot. The sets constructed at Woodlands Hospital -
particularly the incubator room - earned production
designer Graeme Murray and his crew their first
Emmy Award.

^^^^^PBiwj' 'g^^^*^^
-"]''---
«'„..j|U^ ilMBP^'
1 '-'"^^^^M
12

Second Unit assistant location manager

Murdoch with the crushed car.
Roi}
An Emmy award-winning
3Tm
set designed for "Memento Mori" (4x15).

138
 SEASON FOUR
UNREQUITED

A seemingly invisible Vietnam veteran, free from a POW camp

after twenty-five years in captivity, is assassinating military
generals.

VIETNAM WAR MEMORIAL WALL

JERICHO PARK,
4000-BLOCK WEST 4TH AVE. VANCOUVER

Wesearched every green space in the Lower Mainland

foran expansive, groomed, flat field adorned with the
deciduous trees that surround Washington Square. Our
choice, Jericho Park on Vancouver's West Side, shares
similar landscape features. A portion of the wall was built Names of X-Files crew members
by construction, and CGI technology extended the monu- were etched onto the wall.
ment to simulate its real size. A grandstand was erected
on location, and with careful direction and a few pass-
throughs with mounted police, the scene was completed.
The water drainage system in Jericho Park is not as
effective as at other fields. In fact, other than the annual
Vancouver Folk Festival, this area is not heavily used.
Blacks: movie jargon for rolls of
To prevent damage to the grass, trails of plywood were
black duvetyne fabric used to
laid to accommodate both construction and shooting
crew traffic. Despite our efforts, the field was trashed.
But within two days, Frank Haddad and his greens
t shield a set from
nal light.
unwanted exter-

department had completely restored the grass, leaving

no evidence of our lengthy visit.

VIETNAM WAR MEMORIAL WALL

BALLANTYNE PIER, VANCOUVER

To effectively film the night scenes associated with the

War Memorial Wall - that is, to avoid the repercussions
from the cast and crew of several "all-nighters" on
location part of the set had to be constructed inside
-

an empty building. Unfortunately, finding a free-span

building with at least thirty-five-foot-high ceilings was
like finding a needle in a haystack.
After viewing more than ten warehouses, the freespan
A drooping cardboard audience waits for
section of the Ballantyne Pier passenger terminal was "action" on "Unrequited" (4x16).
chosen. Because the north side of the space is exposed
to daylight, a wall was needed to simulate night during
daylight hours. The solution was to tent the area, but
there weren't enough blacks available in Vancouver, so
a special order was sent to L.A.

139
X Marks the Spot
After all that, the space was still considered too small
to permit action to take place both in front of and behind
the bleachers. The rear of the bleachers was eventually
constructed next door at the CERES warehouse. Even
though the warehouse ceilings were too low, there was no
other option, and the view of the wooden trusses in the
final cut is barely noticeable.
The grandstand at lericho Park was dismantled and
reassembled inside Ballantyne Pier and another section
erected at CERES. Because our sets were in the middle of
an operational port facility where large containers were
constantly being unloaded, parking for work trucks
looked grim. The thought of having five hundred extras a
day was even more daunting. Work truck parking was
resolved by a neighbouring business which gave us per-
mission to park on its property and the extras were shut-
tled in each morning by three fifty-five-passenger buses.
The parking fee alone totalled $6,000. To reduce the costs
of extras, it was initially proposed that cardboard cutouts
of people be placed in the rear section of the bleachers.
Over 100 life-sized cardboard cut-outs were imported
from California and put
in place, but after a day in the

Vancouver dampness, the "audience" had slumped over.

FREEDOM SQUARE
STANLEY PARK PEDESTRIAN UNDERPASS,
GEORGIA ST., VANCOUVER

Freedom Square was cleverly cheated using a pedestri-

an underpass leading to Stanley Park. The pylons block-
ing the west side of the underpass were removed to allow
As a gratuity to North Vancouver. The X-Files for picture vehicle access, which included two Hummers.
donated a bench to Cafes Park. The scene depicts the start of a military parade, and as
the procession flows out of the tunnel, the parade is con-
cealed by the concrete cavern. This presented an oppor-
tunity to disguise the actual parade length of the parade,
which was only about 100 feet.

Filming a parade in "Washington, D.C." for "Unrequited" (4x16).

140
 SEASON FOUR
One of the stipulations of filming in parks is that pub-
lic access to the area must be permitted. Productions may
request that members of the public refrain from walking
in front of camera during takes, but that cannot be
enforced. When paparazzi discovered that Gillian was
filming in Stanley Park, a group of photographers
appeared on set but the police would not deny them
access. During this time, Gillian was the subject of
numerous tabloid articles and became an object of desire
for freelance photographers. With an onslaught of securi-
ty guards, production assistants, and every available crew
member, a human blockade was formed, preventing the
unwelcomed visitors from capturing the moment.
In one scene at the Headless
Woman Pub, first assistant director
PENTAGON LOBBY Vladimir Stefoff plays the bartender
CANADA PLACE CRUISE SHIP TERMINAL, (uttering the familiar words, "Last
999 CANADA PLACE, VANCOUVER call, folks . . . cocktail?"). Assistant
location manager Ainslle Wiggs
Films and books depicting interiors of the Pentagon played a tarty barfly, but was edited
were reviewed in order to get the sense of the architecture from the final cut.

and scale of the building. Even though the Pentagon sug-

gests power and omniscience, its mundane architecture is
utterly disappointing from a filming perpective. The only
distinct visual indicator is a maze of concourses which
only limited our location options. After viewing two
potential locations, the Cruise Ship Terminal
design fabrication - doubled for the Pentagon
- with some
interior.
t)
"^
Canada Place, with its distinctive white sails, was
the Canadian Pavillion during Expo '86. The cruise
ship arrival and departure level has been used
extensively as an airport terminal for film purposes.
This space has only once been used as a Pentagon
lobby.

TEMPUS FUGIT
Mulder and Scully find evidence that a commercial airliner may
have crashed as a result of a mid-air abduction of Max Fenig
by a UFO. Moldy corpses in a migrant workers camp
shack ("El Mundo Cira" (4x11)).

HEADLESS WOMAN PUB

15 NORTH RENFREW RESTAURANT,
15 NORTH RENFREW ST., VANCOUVER

One working on The X-Files was the

of the privileges of
frequent requests by various individuals and businesses
-

- that their properties be used as locations, and the loca-

tions department received regular invitations. On quiet

days, our scouts were sent out to investigate and photo-

141
X Marks the Spot
graph these locations, thereby bolstering the massive
photo-library we developed over the years.
One of the nine location requirements in this episode
was a Washington, D.C. pub. Specifically, it had to have a
long bar and be large enough to comfortably accommo-
date both shooting crew and extras. Key to the use of this
location was the ability to return here on the following
Work Hard, Play Hard ctp) episode, as Chris had indicated that he and writer Frank
Spotnitz were working on scenes set here for "Max," the
As the shoNw picked up steam and
second episode of this two-parter.
broke new ground, so did the size and
At an early concept meeting, we discussed the tremen-
scale of the requisite celebrations.
dous cost involved in renting and closing down a func-
From Christmas and end-of-season
tioning bar or restaurant for several days. The "build"
wrap parties to Golden Globe, Emmy,
and lOOth episode celebrations, the
option was also discussed and quickly discarded as being
not only costly but physically impossible given time con-
search for larger and unique locations
in which to hold such festivities
straintsand the lack of space on our soundstages. then 1

became increasingly difficult.

produced a fax received a couple of weeks earlier from
Early parties were held in coffee the owners of a vacant restaurant. Having not yet seen

houses and restaurants. The 100th this location myself, i was reluctant to offer the informa-

episode party was held in two large tion, lest it prove completely inappropriate for our needs.
ballrooms at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, What was that the premises remained
the fax did note
for which Gillian flew in a funk band intact, a featurewhich had great appeal to set decorator
from Los Angeles. The final Vancouver Shirley Inget. The venue was large and eclectic with good
party at the end of Season Five was natural light and yes, a full bar. The open floorplan was
held at the Vancouver Planetarium. split between three levels. If there was a downside, it was
An estimated 1 ,000 people attended, the large number of windows and skylights, which would
with many fans and well-wishers turned t) need to be "tented" to play day for night. Fortunately, all
away at the door. The "Trip to Mars" windows - with the exception of the skylights - were at
simulator was a popular attraction, and ground level, which made key grip Al Campbell's job
the best-kept secret was the hostess somewhat easier.
serving bottles of beer from an ice
This location is where Vancouver actor Brendon *^

chest in the elevator.

Beiser (Agent Pendrell) lost his job - his character
Standing in the bar queue, glanced I

was killed.
around to see two of The Elders lean-
A deal was made and the restaurant booked for three
ing against the bar, engaged in a con-
days with a hold-over clause added. And because the
versation withDeep Throat. Cigarette
property was for sale, a provision was made allowing us
Smoking Man nudged me from behind
to leave the set "dressed" for the following episode.
as Chris greeted cast and crew on the
staircase leading down to the bar and,
as usual, Gillian \A/as tearing up the
dance The moment struck me as
floor.

the perfect — surreal — example of life

imitating art. It was a perfect X-Files
moment.

Airplane crash site for "Tempus Fugit" (4x1 7).

142
 SEASON FOU R
PARADISE MOTEL
LONDON GUARD MOTEL,
2277 KINGSWAY. VANCOUVER

After four seasons and several hundred locations, it

was reassuring to know that we'd not yet exhausted our
list of motels, for once again the script called for a char-
acter autocourt-styk motel with individual or semi-
detached units, this time fictionally set in Northville,
New York.
Three rooms were booked for filming: 326 (Scully), 330
(Sharon Graffia), and 331 (Mulder). Exterior day scenes
involving Scully and Mulder's arrival were also featured.
Sharon's room was suitably trashed by set dec for the
post-abduction scene. As usual, we took over the entire
establishment.
We returned to the London Guard Motel for
"The End" (5x20).

Marty Mclnally (right) and Dan i-lenshaw:

CRASH SITE camera guys.
BOUNDARY BAY AIRPORT AND VICINITY,
DELTA

Working on The X-Files eventually provided every

department in production the opportunity to explore an
area of their expertise as a once-in-a-lifetime visitation.
t)
For the art, construction, and special effects departments,
this meant the creation of a full-scale mock-up of a 737
cabin atop a hydraulic gimbal which allowed the set to
be rocked and tilted violently in all directions.

For the locations department, the challenge was in

providing a lightly-wooded air disaster crash site the size

of a football field. A clearing was necessary in which to
dress the bulk of the wreckage. Similarly, permission was
needed to scorch a large meadow and create a small lake
around which scores of yellow bodybags were systemati-
cally arranged. The set dec department then used air
cannons to blast hundreds of rags and pieces of clothing Bill Kassis (left) and Attila Szalay: doing much
into the trees bordering the site (the real task for the more than putting quarters into telephone
dressers came when it was time to remove them). The booths.
entire process, from start to finish, took one month.
This location was also required to be helicopter-friend-
ly, as a chopper would be used for aerial work (establish-
ing the magnitude of the crash) and as picture equip-
ment. Director Rob Bowman wanted a really
originally
big helicopter for picture - the kind which is used for
helicopter logging - and we looked at an enormous
insect-like Sikorsky S64 SkyCrane, which happened to
be sitting idle at nearby Boundary Bay Airport. Unfort-

143
X Marks the Spot
unately, this idea was jettisoned when we discovered that
the prop wash - at a height of 100 feet in the air - creat-
ed 80-kilometre-per-hour winds which would have effec-
tively blown away dressing, equipment, cast, and crew.
Given the other location requirements for this episode -
which included and an
a large aircraft hangar, a runway,
airport control tower - it was pretty much
slam-dunk for
a
our favourite piece of real estate bordering the Boundary
Bay Airport. The resulting scenes were both incredibly
big, incredibly realistic, and awfully disturbing to anyone
who's ever flown in a fixed-wing aircraft.
One of the stipulations demanded by Transport Canada
- then the owner of this property - was that it be returned
to its natural state upon completion of filming. admit I

that, even with head greenskeeper Frank Haddad's

repeated assurances that a couple of months of rain
would assist in a miracle of restoration (It was early
February 1997), remained skeptical. The degree of dev-
I

astation was enormous.

Returning here several months later, noted thankfully
I

that Frank had been correct. Our "site" was, by now,

indistinguishable from the surrounding landscape.

A) HANGAR
BOUNDARY BAY AIRPORT, DELTA

Large pieces of 737 aircraft wreckage were trucked in

from North Carolina to simulate a crash site, then moved

to the fifty-year-old hangar at nearby Boundary Bay
Airport, where they were arranged to resemble the
reconstruction of our downed Flight 549.
After a costly round of negotiations with machine
Everyone was happy on The X-Files sets. shops, flight schools, and individual plane owners, an
Even trainee assistant director Patrick Stark agreement was reached allowing us several days' access
and a dead guy. to the hangar to prep this location, film the required
scenes, and hold the location for the first day of filming
on the following episode, "Max." The owners of small
planes hangared in this building were not particularly
anxious to leave their valuable aircraft outside in winter
weather. Similarly, machine shop operators were reluc-
tant to close up shop for a couple of days, and did so
only after receiving generous compensation.
Night exterior scenes were filmed on the tarmac out-
side, forwhich several aircraft displaced from the hangar
were rented as "picture" aircraft. The chase scene in
which Mulder, Scully, and Sergeant Frish realize that they
are being followed began outside this hangar and ended

144
 SEASON FOU R
on a runway at the Abbotsford Airport (see A Plane, a Car,
& a Whole Lotta Lights).
The Von Drehle Air Force Reserve Installation control tower
scenes were filmed at the Boundary Bay Airport control
tower. During the filming of the day establishing
sequence, a training helicopter inched its way through the
background of the scene, moments before a frantic crew -
coaxed by a very excited Rob Bowman - was in position
to roll camera. The free production value would have
been awesome. Locations was, of course, asked if the
chopper could be brought back for take two. After a brief
conversation between the aircraft, the tower, and myself,
it was decided to move on, as the time required to reposi-
tion the chopper was longer than we could afford to wait.
Because this facility remained operational between the
While filming "Max" (4x18) at the
hours of 6 a.m. and II p.m., night interiors were filmed
Vancouver International Airport,
after 11 p.m. For these scenes - which were split between
director Kim Manners announced
iVIain and Second Units - the old hangar across the run-
that, for the first time, an episode's
way was lit to provide depth. Runway apron lighting was
budget had reached $2 million. The
also left on. A 125-foot crane was used to film the over-
crew cheered.
head reveal of Frith hiding on the tower roof. By the time
this scene came up, so had the sun. Well, almost. It was
not until this footage came back from the lab that we
knew for certain that no reshoot would be required due to
loss of night.

t)
MAX

Mulder finds the UFO crash site, and retrieves a piece of alien
technology in a knapsack that Max Fenig left for him at an air-

port luggage claim. While transporting the knapsack, Mulder's

flight is itself intercepted by a UFO.

HANGAR
BOUNDARY BAY AIRPORT, DELTA

UFO pre-flight ("Tempus Fugit" (4x1 7),

Several crew members protested the cold conditions in
"Max" (4x18)).
the hangar during the filming of "Tempus Fugit" (4x1 7),

and hangar heaters be turned on for the

insisted that the
filming of this episode, the second part. Since the heaters
had already been established in the previous show as
being "off," there was concern about continuity.
Director Kim Manners' intolerance of the cold sparked
a creative surge. A wide shot of Mulder and Scully's
entrance into the hangar was captured with the heaters
"on," thereby establishing the heat that kept everyone
warm.

145
X Marks the Spot

SYNCHRONY
I Work for The X-Files clg)
An elderly man from the future tries to change the past by
"Zero Sum" (4x21) required a play-
ground \o stage the scene where play-
killing the research scientists - including himself - who are
responsible for inventing a rapid-freezing chemical.
ing children and their teacher are
attacked by a swarm of bees. The
Connaught Park playground was used.
Pheremones — used to attract bees —
SMALL POTATOES
were brought in by a bee wrangler and Scully and Mulder pursue a man with the ability to change his
applied to the "teacher" and certain physical appearance.
areas of the playground. At the end of
the day, the bee wrangler summoned
the bees back to their nests using the
ZERO SUM
same chemical, and all pieces of play-
ground equipment that had been treat-
Mulder and Assistant Director Skinner get caught up in a
ed with pheremone vjere washed with
number of attacks by swarms of bees that seem to be carrying
soap and water.
the smallpox virus.
The bee specialists warned that a
few stray bees might return the next
day, but their ability to survive a win- TRANSCONTINENTAL EXPRESS ROUTING CENTRE
ter's night would make this unlikely. In MAIL-O-MATIC,
the event that any bees did survive, 2720 SOUTH INGLETON AVE., BURNABY
and returned to the park, they would
be unable to find their nest and would Automated mail-sorting operations come in all shapes
likely fly away. Just in case, a produc- and sizes, but for our purposes we wanted something big
tion assistant
watch"
was assigned "bee
for the following day.
Vancouver Parks representative John
V and visually interesting. We'd previously scouted all
willing candidates for "Blood" (2x03) and shot at this
same facility on that episode. The choice was therefore
Gray surveyed the park the next day at academic.
I I a.m. and told the production assis- The bathroom scenes in which the bee attack occurred
tant that everything looked fine. Later, were filmed in a setpiece on a soundstage to accommo-
Second Unit location manager Rob date both special and visual effects requirements.
Murdoch swung by the playground and Entrances and exits were filmed on location.
noticed several bees hovering over the Mail-O-IVIatic employees were hired as background
slide. After phoning John VA/ith an
extras to operate forklifts and sorting equipment, thereby
update, Rob proceeded to kill the bees
lending authenticity to these scenes.
with his binder. Little did Rob know that
his cellular phone was still on and John
was listening to everything that was INCINERATOR ROOM AND SERVICE ELEVATOR
happening at the park.
OLD BOILER ROOM, HOTEL VANCOUVER,
John overheard one parent ask Rob, 900 WEST GEORGIA ST., VANCOUVER
who at that time was sitting on the
slide, if he was a pedophile. "No," was These scenes required a creepy industrial incinerator in
Rob's reply. "I just work for The X-Files." which Skinner could surreptitiously dispose of a body.
To make matters worse, a child fol- More as a point of reference than as a prospective
lowed Rob around the playground, ask- location, we scouted the City of Burnaby's massive indus-
ing why he was killing bees. "Mister,
trial incineration plant, agreeing that it was best "saved"
bees are our friends," the child insisted. for an episode in which it might be given a starring role.
Rob's reply: "I have to kill the bees.
Ever since touring the Hotel Vancouver from sub-base-
I

work for The X-Files."

ment to roof as part of a locations promotion for the
Hotel, I had been looking for an opportunity to use the

146
 SEASON FOUR
decommissioned boiler room in the bowels of the build-
ing. Standing two storeys high, it was not only spooky in

a gothic sense, but it was big and offered a variety of

camera angles.
A preliminary location survey sold it to director Kim
IVIanners, but posted signs warning of the presence of
asbestos resulted in the hiring of a company to contain
potential hazards resulting from the lining of the old boil-
ers with asbestos fibre. A risk management company was
then brought in to evaluate the quality of air. The analysis
confirmed that concentrations were within acceptable
parameters.
This proved to be a very good thing for all concerned, as
Kim had become very attached to the look of this location
and time was running out to come up with a suitable
alternative. As assistant art director Vivien Nishi noted,
"The door opening had to be enlarged to accommodate
the body, which required a brick and mortar expert, our
metal fabricator, and special effects. This, of course, was
done, much to the delight of Kim." Propane flame bars
were also added to one of the boiler units to create a
flaming inferno for Skinner, but this location was other- Main unit assistant location manager
wise shot very much as it was. Rick Fearon and second unit assistant
The exterior establishing shot of the incineration plant location manager Fiona Crossky.

was taken from stock footage. The freight elevator scenes

in which Skinner entered the facility with lane's body
over his shoulder were shot in the service elevator leading t)
to the sub-basement level of the Hotel.

ELEGY

The ghosts of recent murder victims - killed by a nurse from a

psychiatric hospital - appear to people who are about
to die.

BOWLING ALLEY
I'm too warm.
THUNDERBIRD LANES, "No, really.

- Kim Manners
120 WEST 16TH AVE., NORTH VANCOUVER

Finding a bowling alley seemed like an easy task and

most of the bowling alleys in the Lower Mainland were
scouted, it was crucial that the space at the rear of the
lanes be large enough to film in and that the system for
removing pins could be adjusted to allow a body to drop
into the lane. That requirement alone eliminated over two-
thirds of the bowling alleys. The additional requirement -
for a funky interior - narrowed the options to two. There
was also great reluctance by most owners to close down
their facility for the three days required for filming. Their
commitment to bowling leagues was unfathomable.

147
X Marks the Spot
Thunderbird Lanes was undoubtedly the most visually
interesting interior of all the choices, but the exterior - a
generic commercial strip mall - lacked character. The
director requested a search for a different exterior, a build-
ing more traditional and accentuated by an art deco mar-
quee. Interesting building facades across the street from
vacant surface parking lots are rare in Vancouver. All ten

alternatives presented were rejected. Finally, it was decided

that a signmounted over the awning of Thunderbird Lanes
would resolve the dilemma.
Once the extent of the use of the location was estab-
lished, creative scheduling, league buyouts, and a
location fee meant we were off to the lanes. The crew,
of course, bowled during their lunch hour.

An exterior scene scheduled to be shot at the

Cassandra House ("Demons" (4x23)) was
scrapped at the last minute. This, and an
interior made indistinguishable by the set
DEMONS
decorating, allowed us to return here to shoot
Mulder, undergoing radical treatments to recover suppressed
the Sim House for "Christmas Carol" (5x05).
memories, begins to question what he believes about his past,
and his family, and his possible role in murder.

This cottage also played home to

the aging victim of government WISTERIA COTTAGE
xenotransplantation in "Travellers" t> 18237-16 AVE., SURREY
(5x15). Key grip Al Campbell
requested permission to cut a size-
able holein the second-storey floor "Toddwhich - find a secluded or abandoned two-storey
for a lighting effect. His request was clapboard farmhouse with a dirt or grass driveway and a
denied, but as assistant location clean 180 degree reverse." This was the request from
manager Ainslie Wiggs left the set executive producer Bob Goodwin, who also penned this
she recalled hearing the buzz of a episode. Standing beside him, director Kim Manners
chainsaw tearing through wood. simply looked at me and arched his eyebrows, as if to
Seven months pregnant at the say, "Good luck, bud."
time, Ainslie couldn't be bothered
A thorough scout of possible candidates took us back
to investigate the noise. The hole
to the South Surrey-Langley area. Ironically, it was while
was eventually repaired by the con-
on our way to survey another cottage that construction
struction department and such
co-ordinator Rob Maier looked out the van window in
acts, thankfully, were not a com-
mon occurrence.
time to notice this farmhouse. We politely went through
the motions of surveying the location for which had I

made an appointment, then doubled back.

The property had been for sale for a couple of years
and recall standing in a field dialing the number listed
!

on the "For Sale" sign while the survey group waited

anxiously at a distance. Within five minutes the realtor
Locked: the act of confirming a
called back to say the owner of the property lived in the
location for shooting.
eastern United States, having inherited the farm from her
mother, and a call was necessary to confirm our inten-

148
 SEASON FOUR
tions. After a scrum with the art and construction depart-
ments, I ventured a ballpark figure and a list of require-
ments. An agreement in principle was quickly reached.
Oh, but cellular phones do have their place in this world.
One more was necessary before we locked this
call

location. There was much concern over the fact that 16th
Avenue was a major truck route and, as such, very noisy
during the day. ! pitched the City of Surrey on our plan,
proposing a detour route for the day of filming, to which
they agreed. The entire deal took about twenty minutes,
after which we hopped in the van and drove back to
North Vancouver.
At this point, the art, greens, and construction depart-
ments took over, transforming the farmhouse to conform
to both Goodwin's and Manners' specifications.

CASSANDRA HOUSE
ST., VANCOUVER
3106 ALBERTA

The Cassandra house proved a much easier sell than the

Wisteria cottage. had watched this house for a couple of
I

years in the hope that we would one day be able to use it

as a location.
t)
This craftsman-style heritage home underwent a huge
restoration in 1992, effectively saving it from the bulldoz-
er. The main floor was stripped of furniture and filled

with computer-enhanced "paintings" of the Wisteria cot-

tage - close to 100 reproductions in all shapes and sizes,
according to set decorator Shirley Inget. There were, in

fact, so many hung on walls and propped up

paintings -

on easels, tables, window ledges, and mantels - that

much of the interior ambience was overwhelmed in the
final edited scenes.

Under siege ("Folie a Deux" (5x19)).

TtiV'JfTFMI

149
X Marks the Spot

GETHSEMANE
When a grey alien body is discovered frozen in ice, Mulder
and Scully learn that its existence might be part of an elaborate
government hoax. Scully also discovers that the same people
responsible for the hoax gave her cancer, and identifies a
suicide victim's body as Mulder's.

INDUSTRIAL PARK/DARPA
YELLOW PAGES/DOMINION DIRECTORY,
CREEK RD., BURNABY
4260 STILL
The Dominion Directory complex hosted a variety of sets
including the exterior industrial park, interior office building,

interior parking garage, interior bio labs, and interior stairwell.

Finding this diverse combination of locations was considered
a coup except for a major drawback two days prior to filming.
After the technical survey, the gaffer protested the use of
the parkade on the basis of mercury vapour lights. To ob-
its

new lighting system had to

tain the desired lighting effect, a
be installed at an astronomical cost. With only two days of
prep remaining, alternative parkades were presented to exec-
utive producer and director Bob Goodwin but dismissed for
various reasons. As the deadline for filming neared, whiling
away the last minutes in the survey van, suggested that we I

Production assistant Robyn Gelka is attacked

'$ turn out the house lights - as done previously on other
episodes - take lights from our truck - the largest lighting
by the air conditioning.
package in B.C. - and light the parkade ourselves. The
resulting lighting effect looked spectacular.
Filming in parkades is a nightmare as they are built for
a specific use; to accommodate vehicles on a daily basis.
They are a rare commodity, and are difficult to access for
The main attraction for film produc-
exclusive film purposes. The opportunity to film at the
tions at the Vancouver Art Gallery
Dominion Directory parkade was unprecedented, especially
are the old courtrooms, one of
at 3 p.m. Usually parkades are available only after 7 p.m.,
which was used as the Judacia
which means an entire night of filming.
Archives in "Kaddish" (4x12).

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTE
VANCOUVER ART GALLERY,
750 HORNBY ST., VANCOUVE
Finally, the opportunity to film at the Art Gallery rotunda
arose. The spiral stairwell was used to depict the Smithsonian
Institute. - entitled Plastic Happ-
Unfortunately an installation
iness and featuring a twelve-foot-long nylon-fabric pig, held
aloft with the aid of an air compressor and cables hovered
over the stairwell, and would have been clearly discernible
in the intended sequence of shots. An exact replica of the

stairwellwas requested by Bob, even though he knew that

no alternative locations existed. There was no doubt, the pig
had to go. Robin Naiman, our contact at the gallery, was

150
 SEASON FOU R
somewhat surprised by our request to remove the "pig," but
proposed the question to her staff. Four staff members agreed
to remove the installation and then reinstall it after filming.

INTERIOR SUMMIT CAVE/INTERIOR WAREHOUSE/INTERIOR TENT

SBS FREEZERS, 6228 BERESFORD ST.
BURNABY
The "winter" moments of this episode were captured at
Seymour Mountain, the Tantalus Range in Squamish, and
SBS Freezers. The interior ice caves were initially supposed
to be builds, and the quest for warehouse space proceeded.
While scouting at the Pacific National Exhibition, Chris
called executive producer Bob Goodwin and insisted that the
breath of the actors be visible. Word was out: "Chris wants
to see breath."
Any special effects alternatives were expensive. A cold
storage plant was the most practical and least costly solu-
tion. This former meat-packing plant and its freezer room

would ultimately produce "breath," but to upgrade the sys-

tem, a local refrigeration company submitted a quote of
$65,000. A competing was then asked for a quote, and
firm
for a fraction of the original estimate, Chris saw breath.

On the hot, sunny days of mid-IViay, crew members were

themselves sub-zero

t
outfitting in attire.

Special effects coordinator Dave Cauthier.

Off to left is art director Greg Loewen.

The ice cave ("Cethsemane" (4x24)) as seen from the inside.

The ice cave ("Cethsemane" (4x24)) as seen from the outside.

151
SEASON FIVE: AUGUST 1997 - MAY 1998
X Marks the Spot
UNUSUAL SUSPECTS
Show Us the Money ctp)
As is sometimes the case when The story of how the Lone Gunmen came to be: a woman who
fulfilling the public relations duties of a was involved in producing a paranoia-inducing gas solicits
location manager, the big productions help from three men at a computer convention.
atone for the sins of their smaller
siblings. This is not to say that all big
shows are necessarily created equal or
NEWSPAPER OFFICES
that a big show is, by definition, more THE DOMINION BUILDING
responsible than a smaller show. 207 WEST HASTINGS ST., VANCOUVER
The simple truth — as distasteful as it

The first episode of Season Five was unusual in more

may be — is that money has a palliative
effect on wounds and acts of indiscre-
than one way. With the exception of a very brief appear-
tion (real or perceived), which enable ance by iVlulder, David and Gillian - who were still filming

certain productions to achieve what the first X-Files feature Fight the Future in California - were
others cannot. And while there is no absent from this show. The episode was hence written
substitute for creativity, deep pockets around Vancouver's own Lone Gunmen.
open reluctant doors. The location requirement for our Baltimore, Maryland
On more than one occasion, 77ie X- newspaper office exterior led us to the kind of traditional
Files was cited (ironically enough, by big-city building evocative of the Hearst publishing era.
other productions) as being guilty of For this reason, we chose the old TD Bank building
inflating location costs around which, ironically, sat kitty-corner to what was once a
Vancouver, an accusation accompa- real newspaper office building.
nied by fiction asmuch as fact. There It perhaps unfortunate that scenes were not written
is

is no doubt that when we, as a film to showcase the interior of this building, which is particu-
unit, moved Into a neighbourhood, we larly notable for its ornate hallways and stairwells. It is
moved in. With a prep crew whose
numbers sometimes rivalled those of
t) also unfortunate that this neighbourhood, on the edge of
skid row, is so tender (see Show Us the Money).
an entire shooting crew on other pro-
This building faces Victory Square and the oft-used
ductions, there was no such thing as a
Victory Alley, which played as a Washington, D.C.
subtle presence or minimal disruption.
street and drug hang-out in "Wetwired" (3x23).
Scripts were large and ambitious,
demanding elements usually associat-
ed with feature films. We made this
clear to all concerned from the begin- LTINI
ning. Better to map out a worst-case
scenario than to understate the terms
of our presence.The last thing we
needed was to be accosted by a group
of angry merchants or residents during
filming, hurling accusations that they
were misled or lied to.

Night filming was almost always

accompanied by at least two lighting
cranes and access to adjacent yards
and rooftops — sometimes a block or
two away — for additional lighting
requirements. The use of wind and
lightning machines, as well as raintow-
ers, was common. And while we :/! A Lone Gunman: Tom Braidwood
always attempted to schedule such outside the Ovaltine Cafe.

154
 SEASON FIVE
CONVENTION CENTRE
ROBSON SQUARE CONFERENCE CENTRE,
600 ROBSON ST., VANCOUVER effects early in the evening, this was not
always possible due to late calls or
As early as |uly 1997, producer Finn had warned
|.P.
lengthy and complicated set-ups. The
me that a large convention centre would be required as
polling of neighbourhoods thus became
the key location for this episode. With Season Five prep
standard procedure prior to any night
still several weeks away, 1 made a shortlist of possibilities,
filming, whether we needed the extra
although there was really only one choice. time (after the usual 1 1 p.m. noise
Director Kim Manners was concerned that a bland, restriction kicked in) or not.
sterile environment would only detract from the story. The easiest — and perhaps fairest —
With so much screen time devoted to this location, he way to deal with resistance was to relo-
insisted that it offer something visually unique. The defin- cate the protesters (usually to a hotel
ing features here were a tiered ceiling and a large mezza- room) for the duration of the shoot,
nine area from which the main hall could be seen (and something many television shows could
filmed). All other available choices of location (with the not afford. Cash payments, which we
exception of the Pacific Ballroom at the Hotel Vancouver) likened to extortion, were avoided
were simply windowless conference halls.
large, except in extreme situations.
Availability was had booked a holi-
a key issue. David If someone wanted money in exchange

day upon completion of his work on the feature. That for their co-operation, we usually tried
meant he was unavailable to production for over a week to find an alternate location.
after we were to begin filming. The shooting schedule found out one hot August afternoon
I

was therefore split between "Unusual Suspects" and the in 1 997 that finding an alternative was

season's second episode, "Redux." We completed six of not always possible. We were prepping

our eight-day schedule on "Unusual Suspects" and shot the first episode of Season Five,

the first three days of "Redux." We then returned to the

"Unusual Suspects," the first show to be

Convention Centre to complete David's work upon his t> written around the Lone Gunmen. The
script called for a convention centre, for
return, before moving to a warehouse to complete Day
which we used the lower level of the
Eight on the schedule. The following day, "Redux"
Robson Square Conference Centre. It
recommenced filming with Day Four work.
also called for the exterior of a big-city
It was an awkward and costly arrangement which
newspaper office, for which the
required locations to "hold" the conference facility for an
Dominion Building at 207 West
additional four days. In all, The X-Files occupied the
Hastings Street seemed ideally suited.
Robson Square Conference Centre for seventeen consecu-
The neighbourhood was rundown
tive days in five days of film and facilitate
order to shoot
enough to convey the sense of a big
a massive "dress" and "strike." Also dressed and shot American city, in this case Washington,
were the lobby and foyer, which meant that events in the D.C. My biggest potential problem — or
adjoining theatres - those not being rented to house our so thought — was keeping well away
I

large contingent of extras - were either moved elsewhere from a retail sewing supply outlet at the
or rescheduled around filming days. west end of the block infamous for the
We were very fortunate to be filming this show in late owner's opposition to filming anywhere
August, which was the "low season" for convention and near its doors. Hypocritical, since many
conference hall bookings. At any other time of year, a costumers and seamstresses employed
booking such as this would not have been possible. in the film industry regularly shop there
Props master Ken Hawryliw was cast as the for fabricand supplies.
computer nerd whom the police wrongfully hauled warned director Kim Manners that
I

off to jail, all the while mumbling the lines: "I didn't this location could be problematic for

hack Into anyone's computer Seriously, guys, . . .

this reason and he assured me that he

I've got a circulatory problem ... have a tendency I

would have no problem staying well
to fall down a lot. . .
." away from that end of the block. A deal

155
X Marks the Spot

REDUX
was signed with the owners of the Scully discovers the origin of her cancer, as Mulder discovers -

Dominion Building and an agreement in in a secret research facility - the truth behind the existence of
principle reached with the woman who the aliens he has believed in for so long.
ran the confectionary kiosk directly out-
side the front doors of the building, as
her business was directly in the line of INTERIOR DARPA
fire. Resident letters were circulated. JUSTICE INSTITUTE
We also intended to stage an abduc- 715 MCBRIDE BLVD. NEW WESTMINSTER
tion around the corner of the Dominion
Building in the 400-block of Cambie The interior of the DARPA facility was intended to reflect
Street, for which police \A/ere to be used a modern high-tech facility with an imposing, impenetra-
for intermittentone-way traffic lock-ups ble security entrance leading to a large open lobby and
(forno longer than three-minutes). I
connected to an endless maze of corridors. Long corridors
knew that, in the past, there had been were of paramount importance in order to stage a five-
problems involving film crews and a minute walk-and-talk. As previously mentioned, large
handful of small businesses in the half- lobbies and long hallways are scarce resources in
block north of the alley, specifically in Vancouver. The limited number of potential locations
and around a particular residential hotel. available allowed filming on weekends only and were dis-
To this end, intended to restrict our
I
missed on that basis alone. The main contender, the
activities south of the alley. What was I
Justice institute, permitted filming after 5 p.m. While
not prepared for was the near-violent scouting the institute with the director, producer, and
reception from a half-dozen irate mer- department heads, ! mentioned the time restrictions. I

chants who surrounded me and pro- suggested the use of the Fraserview Building at Wood-
ceeded to verbally accost me about
crimes committed by
block.
This despite the fact that
film crews in their

we were still
^ lands for some of the hallway scenes as
filming at the Institute for
tinued with the intent to film
two full

all
an alternative to
nights, but prep
of the interior
con-
DARPA
scenes at the institute.
several days away from filming at this
Several days before the technical survey, producer j.P.
location and our activities here were to
Finn marched into my office and barked, "What do you
be brief (about two hours, as it turned
mean, we can't film at the Justice Institute during the
out). When I finally managed tocalm
day?" I was summoned to the boardroom to explain. The
everyone down enough to have a ratio-
above-the-liners denied any knowledge of time restric-
nal discussion, the situation became
tions, while the below-the-liners remained silent, waiting.
clear. An earlier production had
promised compensation as part of a After the photo file - with bold red letters, "No filming

"deal" to film in front of these business- until 5 was produced, the room still echoed with
p.m." -
es, but the production had disappeared denial, but it was evident on certain faces that memories

upon completion of filming, reneging on had been refreshed. A scout of the nearby Fraserview
their promise. Building hallways at Woodlands was added to the loca-
A funny thing happens to disgruntled tion itinerary for the following day and its entire quadran-
human beings once they've been given gular hallway was used to stage the walk-and-talk scene.
the opportunity to vent in the face of Although hours of filming at the lustice Institute were
their adversary (which I clearly was): restricted, we were given permission to build the security
they become reasonable and almost booth between the lobby and the busiest corridor - the
sympathetic to your cause. No one likes hallway leading to the cafeteria. A wall, with a three-foot
to be ignored, especially when they doorway, was constructed in the corridor.
have a valid complaint. All the more so Permission was also requested to test a special helium
when the perceived villain is a large balloon to be used for lighting purposes. With a diameter
of five metres (seventeen feet), this contraption had a
frame at the bottom to accommodate four 4K HMI lights

156
 SEASON FIVE
that shone up into the balloon, essentially creating a
giant lightbulb. This lighting effect would maintain the
illusion of daylight as night upon the glass-domed
fell
company or a representative of a large

atrium lobby. The test was approved but what no one Industry. I listened Intently to their com-
knew was that in order to inflate the balloon, a loud
plaints, pointing out that, while The X-
much powerful hair
Files had never filmed In this block
electrical air blower, like a large,
before, v<ie had, many
worked out times,
dryer, was to be used.
of the parking lot around the corner and
On the day of filming, cabling proceeded well in
next to the vacant Woodward's building.
advance and lights were hauled in,
of the time restriction,
"Had we ever caused them grief
one at a an attempt to conceal our clandestine
time, in
before?" asked, knowing that the
I

activity. By 5:30 p.m., the crew had arrived to an almost

ans\A/er would be, "No."
completely lit location.
I cut to the chase and asked what
they wanted for compensation for loss of
INTERIOR/EXTERIOR DARPA business, given the fact that we would
be filming over the lunch hour on a
YELLOW PAGES/DOMIONION DIRECTORY,
Friday afternoon in the summer. $200
4260 STILL CREEK DR., BURNABY
for each business was the quick

The interior of DARPA came back to haunt the locations response. It seemed reasonable
department. While the entire lobby and the constructed enough, but given that there were nine
security booth at the Justice Institute was filmed, an separate businesses here, $1,800 stuck
In my throat. What was really happening
alternative lobby was required to show the approach to
the security booth.
was that our production \was being

when they thought they saw the last of us (at the

asked to apologize for the entire indus-
Just
try. pondered this for a few moments
Season Four), we returned to the Dominion
I

end of
before agreeing to their demand. We
Directory with a special request: to film
during a work day. Generally, filming during the day at
in

an active facility is not permitted. But this was a special

request and the building management had become
the lobby

^ shook hands and, as was leaving, the

me: "We'll never see you again, will

I

owner of the residential hotel taunted

we?" took him into his office, where

I I

comfortable with our presence. The scene had to be shot

expressed my own displeasure at being
in daylight and it was impossible to complete the scene
called a liar, and told him that would I

between the end of the day at 4:30 p.m. and sunset at take a great deal of pleasure in not only
8:30 p.m. In consideration of our past association with proving him wrong, but also in personal-
them, Dominion Directory officials gave us permission ly delivering each and every cheque to
to film during the day. With careful and considerate prep each and every merchant. Which is
and the excitement generated by David's presence, a exactly what did upon completion of
I

smooth day of filming was chalked up. Again, the pro- filming.
ceeds for filming were donated to a charitable fund. Given the phenomenal growth rate of
the movie industryin British Columbia

(some twenty percent per annum) and

managing
the difficulties associated with
that kind of rapid growth, such scenar-
ios are, perhaps, impossible to avoid.
And while there exists a degree of dis-
honesty amongst some merchants or
small businesses In any city, the over-
\whelming majority are content simply to
be heard and treated reasonably.

157
X Marks the Spot

REDUX II

A microchip Mulder took from the research facility is implanted

into Scully's neck, and sends her cancer into remission.
Cigarette Smoking Man is shot after trying to recruit Mulder by
arranging a meeting with Mulder and his sister, Samantha.
Don't they know who
we are?
Filming for "Redux" (5x02) involved
THE RACETRACK
some amount of studio work. A Lions HASTINGS PARK RACECOURSE,
Gate Studios' office building and its EXHIBITION PARK, VANCOUVER
vacant second floor was a promising
The Elders may have shown scant regard for human
solution. The Studio approved our use
life, but they certainly loved their horses. Evidently, so did
of the space, but the following day, they
the sniper. And when it comes to thoroughbred racing,
called to tell us that there were
prospective tenants. They wanted to
there's only one place in town to go. We'd established a
back out of our agreement. Given that connection between the Well-iVIanicured IVIan and horse-
we rented three stages on a long-term breeding on "Tunguska" (4x09), locating his ranch at
basis, producer J. P. Finn was asked to Lone Rock Farms. It seemed logical that we should even-
help resolve the situation. After he all,
tually find him at a racetrack.

was the person who, when denied a Filming at the track can be tricky, especially during the
curfew extension by City of Vancouver racing season, when film companies must contend not
officials during the filming of a Season only with morning practices but with late afternoon rac-
Three episode, responded by saying, ing four days a week. Here we were lucky enough to slip
"Don't they know who we are?" The in with a Second Unit crew after morning practice on a

answer was, "Yes, but no matter what day when "the ponies" were not running.
some Teamster said about The X-Files
having the keys to the City, it's not
:©
true." North Shore Studios knew who GEORGETOWN STREET
we were, and a phone call from J. P.
400-BLOCK OF WEST CORDOVA ST.,
secured the second floor for our use. VANCOUVER

A scribbled note on the script page describing this

location read "think Gastown," for not only was
Vancouver's Gastown area the only believable match for
Georgetown, but it was an area very familiar to both
Chris and his writing team.
Key to identifying a precise section of street was the
proximity of a parking garage from which a sniper would
follow Mulder and the Cigarette Smoking Man's sidewalk
conversation in the crosshairs of his rifle. A six-level
parkade was chosen and level four identified as the point
from which the sniper would shoot. Levels four through
six were subsequently booked and closed to the public
during filming.
A window in a building opposite the parking garage
was then chosen to double as the Cigarette Smoking
William B. Davis (Cigarette Smoking Man)
Man's apartment, for his implied death would also be
trades his Morkys for a microphone.
filmed on this day. During a preliminary scout, we'd
looked at another parkade across the street from one of
Vancouver's more famous hotels and strip clubs. Eight of

158
 SEASON FIVE
US made a late-morning visit to an "empty" room in the
hotel, startling an old gentleman sleeping off a night of

drinking. He stood quietly dazed in his underwear as 1

2-Jay Way ctp)
explained our presence and apologized for the distur- The 2-Jay's Caf6 appeared as a
bance. repeat location in "Redux M" (5x03),
A false wall or "return" was erected in the office into where a diner was required In which to
which our window faced, it was built to match the
stage a meeting between Mulder and
Cigarette Smoking Man's apartment interior, a setpiece sister Samantha. The original intention
constructed on one of our soundstages. The existing win- had been to pick a diner In Steveston,
dow - which was sealed - was then carefully removed by as the scripted scenes required a
a glazier and our own custom-built window installed, as visual relationship between the Interior
a requirement in this scene was that the sheer curtains of the diner and Cigarette Smoking
blow gently in the breeze. The breeze was created by Man's car, which would be angle-
suspending a large electric fan from the exterior of the parked outside with headlights illumi-
building just out of camera frame. nating Mulder sitting at his table.
Both City Hall and the police department were very A suitable diner — which permitted
helpful with traffic control on this busy route. angle parking and addressed our
Unfortunately, and to David's displeasure, an unsched- primary concerns — was found in
uled cruise ship arrived at the nearby terminal during Steveston, south of Vancouver. The fact

filming, unloading 300 very curious tourists into the mid- that most of the scenes being filmed
here were night scenes made for easi-
dle of our location. With handicams rolling and auto-
er negotiations with merchants, most of
graph pads in hand, many could not believe their good
fortune at having walked off a cruise vessel and onto an
whom would be gone for the day by
the time we arrived. At the last minute,
X-Files set. With every available production assistant
however, David — who was In virtually
already controlling pedestrian traffic at key points of
every scene being shot at the diner —
access, we were overwhelmed by eager fans oblivious to
our requests to maintain distance, and David was sur- t) got wind of an impending all-nighter at
a location far from home, and this
rounded. A local security company was hastily called in
choice was abandoned in favour of the
to provide both a bodyguard and additional guards for
2-Jay's Cafe In downtown Vancouver. It

crowd control.
was, for the crew, a popular decision,
The stairwell in which the sniper ascends the as no one wanted to see another
parkade was unsuitable at this location, as it was Saturday morning sunrise from behind
very narrow and completely enclosed. Director the wheel of a vehicle.
Kim Manners wished to shoot this sequence with There were some real problems
a combination of high-angle shots and a substitute associated with filming these particular
stairwell was found at the Atrium Inn (2889 East scenes at the 2-Jay's Cafe. It had been
Hastings St.). The scene was shot by the Second decided to move as much night work
Unit crew the day of their shoot at the Hastings as possible to day In order to wrap by 2
Park Racecourse. or 3 a.m. For the grips, this meant tent-
ing the entire front of the building out to
the edge of the sidewalk. Similarly, the
delicate nature of the dialogue scenes
required not only traffic on the
control
street, but control of the tenants of a
rooming house directly above the caf^.
Police officers working around rush
hour restrictions would deal with vehic-
(l-r) Director Rob Bowman,
ular traffic but the residents of the Arco
David, and first assistant
were another story.
director Tom Braidwood '\\] f,"
discuss a scene in
downtown Vancouver.
159
X Marks the Spot

DETOUR
Ancient creatures with glowing red eyes who live in the forests

of Florida are attacking people in the area, providing a distra-

After lengthy discussions with a repres-

tion for Mulder and Scully, who are headed to an FBI seminar.

entative of the DowntoNA^n Eastside

Residents' Association (DERA), it was
suggested that any attempt to control CLEARINGIN WOODS/HIGHWAY
the activities of residents of the room- SEYMOUR DEMONSTRATION FORES"
ing house — heavily populated by drug NORTH VANCOUVER
addicts and alcoholics — would only
create a larger problem on the day of Filming this episode - which was written to include

filming. As the DERA representative mostly day scenes - involved a constant battle with day-
may light and the weather, it was the first and last time that
was quicl< to point out, "You not
like the way these people live, but they IVlain Unit shooting was extended to ten days, which
are also citizens with rights." meant that the remainder of the year's schedule had to be
In representing the interests of adjusted. With over twenty shooting days in total, a

residents of Vancouver's Downtown record was broken. Luckily, most of the show was filmed
Eastside, DERA attempts to fulfill many in the Seymour Demonstration Forest and, given its close
roles. With regard to the film industry, proximity to the studio, return trips could be arranged on
one DERA rep must be employ-
at least clear days.
ed by each film company filming in this This episode marked our twenty-fourth IVlain Unit
difficult neighbourhood, ostensibly to Seymour Demonstration
visit to the Forest.
act as a liaison betvi/een the film
While Main Unit was shooting in the early days of the
company and the disenfranchised or
schedule, the helium lighting balloon - first used by the
less-stable element within the commu-
electrics department was set up
at the justice Institute -
nity. So,a problem arises with a local
if
t> for an exterior scene and Scully stranded in the
of JVlulder
resident at any stage in the filming
forest at night. Gale-force winds swept away the balloon
process, the DERA rep is immediately
and in consideration of safety all lighting cranes were dis-
called to help resolve the situation.
mantled, and the night ended early. During the following
In this case, a plan evolved whereby
residents were offered a free room for
week, the rains descended, adding texture to the imagery
the night another hotel in
in
but limiting daylight hours.
Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Only The greens department had a crew of twenty-two
those who refused the offer outright working on this episode, the largest Frank Haddad
and who seemed very ever needed.

wm
likely to create
trouble for the productioncrew — there
were two — were offered twenty dollars
in exchange for being quiet and co-

operating with our crew. In order to

extend this offer, location scout Alan
Bartolic made several harrowing trips
through the halls of the Arco, collecting
names in an attempt to gain a sense of
the degree of co-operation we might
expect.

m
Canadian director Brett Dowlcr and forest dweller in "Detour" (5x04).

160
 SEASON FIVE
CHRISTMAS CAROL

Scully receives a number of phone calls from an unknown

source, which lead her to a young girl, Emily, who turns out
to be her daughter.
Fortunately, the majority of tenants
opted for alternate lodging for the night.
THE POST-MODERN What later learned was that several
PROMETHEUS I

residents checked into the other hotel

A small town in Indiana is terrorized by a peanut-butter-sand- and immediately sublet their free room
wich-eating. Frankenstein-like monster who has a fondness for by the hour to "friends." They then
Cher. showed up at the 2-Jay's and demand-
ed their twenty bucks (word was out). A
glance at Alan's list revealed that they
POLLIDORI'S HOUSE had already opted for the free room.
BURRVILLA, DEAS ISLAND PARK, RIVER RD. One major problem arose that night
DELTA with a resident on the second floor.
Unfortunately, his room was immedi-
Chris' black-and-white episode presented one of the ately above our set. Refusing to
biggest challenges of the season. With ten huge locations relocate, he disappeared at around
on the plate, the survey bus transported the team to 3 p.m. (call-time) and returned to col-
Richmond, Delta, Ladner, Downtown Vancouver, East lect his twenty dollars at approximately
Vancouver, and finally North Vancouver, all within ten 6 p.m. Returning again at 9 p.m. (this
hours. time an intoxicated state), he
in

"That's one thing really wish I'd done." - Cher,

I
proceeded to hike the volume on his
on her refusal of Chris Carter's request that she stereo to warp nine, making the
guest star as herself at the end of "The Post-Modern recording of dialogue scenes all but
Prometheus" (5x06). A Cher look-alike was used t> impossible.
instead. During the ensuing forty-five minute
delay to production, the DERA rep and
a police officer paid the man a visit, but
were unable to resolve the issue.
Assistant location manager Ainslie
Wiggs him downstairs,
finally lured

promising to give him another twenty

bucks to co-operate. When he became
violent and abusive, it was suggested
that a bed for the night — courtesy of
the Vancouver Police Department —
might be found "a few blocks away."
Neither myself nor the attendant offi-

cers saw his incarceration in a city

lock-up as just resolution to this prob-
lem, but when the man kicked in the
Scully and Mutato ("The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06)). back window of the paddywagon, he
was taken a\A/ay.

Pollidori's house was an exceptional find, with its grand

Victorian architecture, remote setting, and the aspect
its

of a road in front of the house allowing for an unob-

structed view of the tarped premises. There was one
major drawback to the house: it was a crafts retail outlet
for part of the year and when scouted, the business was

161
X Marks the Spot
gearing up for Christmas. The interior decor, largely
resembling Martha Stewart on a bad day, inspired Chris'
vision and he requested a similar theme without the
Christmas references. Within two days, four staff mem-
bers, a moving company, six set decorators, and three
production assistants pooled their efforts to remove any
semblance of Christmas. Then set dec constructed their
own IVlartha Stewart set.

The X-Files was the first film company to use this

location. A number of series and movies have shot
here since.
The wrap was awful. No one could remember what
went where. Of course no one had taken photographs to
document the space "before," but with the crew's creativ-
ity unleashed, the store was restored to its original state.

Almost. A missing door mat cost the production $25.

Down the road past this house was the clearing used
for the peanut butter vigil. A few days after we confirmed
our filming days, we were informed that the field had
been previously booked by a boy scout camp group. In
Location scout Alan Bartolic with Mutato November. We reimbursed the troop for their booking
("The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06)). costs, made a donation, and, to the delight of the group,
invited them to set.
Two lighting cranes and the helium lighting balloon
illuminated the deciduous forest surrounding the clearing.
While Main Unit filmed in the field on a clear Friday
A) night, the balloon hovered over the field in complete view
of an adjacent highway. Second Unit was assigned to
shoot the exterior lightning storm outside of Burrvilla.
Around 5 p.m., Main Unit moved from the Ladner Post
Some scenes for "The Post-Modern Office - where the town riot took place - to Deas Island
Prometheus" (5x06) were filmed in
Park, on the heals of the Second Unit move in.
a Vancouver residential neighbour-
hood. A few days after we had
This episode won production designer Graeme
Murray and his art department a second Emmy
wrapped out, a woman called with a
award for Outstanding Art Direction for a Series
concern. It seemed that, since our
in 1998. .
.^^
appearance, her sewing machine
would only function in "reverse." She
was wondering if our generators might
have done something. Our only
recourse was to send flowers and
apologize for our trickery.

Set decorating for "The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x05).

162
 SEASON FIVE
EXTERIOR SWALE/DEEPER WOODS
MAPLEWOOD FLATS WILDLIFE SANCTUARY,
2600-BLOCK DOLLARTON HWY., NORTH VANCOUVER

A swale was required to stage the scene for the appear-

ance of the grandfather and a pig. We consulted the
Oxford Dictionary for a definition, but it wasn't listed. Nor
was it listed in other dictionaries. The true meaning was
finally revealed in The Meridian and the hunt for "a gully
or low-lying depressed landscape" was The quest for
on.
a filmable site - easily accessible for equipment and safe
for walking - along the edge of a land depression was
depressing. After visits to properties in Surrey, Vancouver,
and the Seymour Demonstration Forest in North
Vancouver, a mound off a parking lot at Maplewood Flats
was selected. It wasn't a swale, itwas a mound, in the In "The Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06). the
end it didn't matter as the scene was cut. barn catches fire, which prompted special
effects co-ordinator Dave Cauthier's utterance,
"If you build it, I will burn it."

FARM/BARN
2981 - 41 B ST., DELTA

The configuration of a farmhouse that looked onto a

barn (that could be burned) was one of the most immedi-
ate and urgent requirements
plan to construct a false barn facade to burn
of this episode. The
was
initial

esti-
X)
mated to cost about $40,000. For half the price, the same
effect could be achieved by constructing a false front with
fire retardant materials covering an existing barn.
Scenes for "Killswitch" (5x01) were also filmed
at this location.
Just days before construction on the barn facade was to
proceed, the carpenters voiced their concerns about the
health ramifications of working inside a barn that housed
mice. The locations department was asked to have the
barn interior disinfected. Location scout Alan Bartolic
consulted five infectious disease specialists and conclud-
ed that bleach and power washing would remove the dust
particles associated with mice feces. The cleaners -
dressed in moon suits and respirators - washed the
problem away.
Chris Carter was nominated for Best Director by the In L.A. after the Directors Guild of America
awards.
Directors Guild of America for directing "The Post-
Modern Prometheus." He invited ten crew members -
including Louisa - all expenses paid, to the awards
ceremony at Century Plaza in L.A. It was a
Hollywood spectacle with greats including James
Cameron, Francis Ford Coppola, and Steven Spielberg
in attendance. Most importantly, it wasn't raining.

163
X Marks the Spot

EMILY
Squatters' Rights ctp)
Scully and Mulder, while searching for a cure to Emily's ill-
I believed we had found the perfect
ness, determine that she is linked to the alien-hybrid clones.
location for the retirement home scripted
in "Emily" (5x07). First discovered while
filmingscenes for "Memento Mori" (4x15) RETIREMENT HOME
inan adjacent apartment building, the GLEN HOSPITAL, 036 SALSBURY DR. 1

Glen Hospital was now vacant and being VANCOUVER

considered by the city for re-zoning for
Every now and then the unique opportunity arises to
condominium redevelopment. No one
make use of a location which is about to disappear or be
had filmed here previously and, given the
forever transformed. Such was the case with the Glen
redevelopment schedule, it was unlikely
Hospital, a defunct retirement home we discovered nine
thatanyone would film here after
months earlier while filming scenes for "Memento IVIori"
The X-Files.
(4x15) next door at a three-storey brick apartment building
I contacted the new owner of the prop-
erty and pitched him our filming propos-
{Kurt's apartment in that script).

al. He liked the novelty of the idea, realiz-

When Chris described this location, the Glen Hospital

ing that would be a one-off deal.

it
came to mind immediately as the choice. It was vacant and
Arrangements were made to take a slated for redevelopment, although its designated Heritage-
location survey of essential department A status saved the main structure from the wrecker's ball.

heads through the building as a precur- A was couriered to Chris in Los Angeles,
location photofile
sor to negotiations. Departmental require- who gave it the thumbs up, and a survey was arranged.
ments were subsequently discussed and This structure was originally built in 1908 by an
a prep schedule hammered out. An insur- Australian realtor and auctioneer. The hospital was the
ance certificate and a location agree- perfect location for The X-Files. It was creepy and odd,
ment were faxed to the owner's office, with a long main hallway off which a number of private
and a cheque requisition drawn up for t) and group dayrooms were located. Much of the hospital
the negotiated amount. We then agreed equipment - wheelchairs, walkers, beds, and dishes -

to meet on Monday morning (it was now remained, as if the new owners had simply locked the
Friday afternoon) to exchange a set of doors and walked away. The untended grounds outside
keys for a cheque, since the paint lent to thesescenes a visual sense of angst and foreboding
department required access no later than forwhich The X-Files had become famous. Looking at this
Monday afternoon to begin a repaint. building from the street, you just knew some terrible secret
tried several times to reach the owner
I

by telephone on Monday morning, only

was about to be revealed from within. I
After near-disaster was averted during the negotiation
to be told he was "unavailable." Explain-
process once again imitating art (see Squatter's Rights)
- life
ing our prior arrangement and my plight
- a cleaningcrew attacked the interior of the building to
— which \was growing more desperate by
prepare it for the onslaught of the paint, construction, and
the hour — convinced the receptionist to
I

set dec departments. The old furnace in the basement -

give me the owner's cellular phone num-
while still operational - needed a speedy overhaul in order
ber. It was 12 noon when reached I finally
to generate enough heat to dry paint and keep the prep
him and, judging by the clamour in the
crews warm.
background, knew there was a problem.
I

He frantically informed me that he was This was the one and only time this location was ever

at the Glen Hospital with a number of used by a film crew, as redevelopment began soon after
police officers, desperately trying to dis- we wrapped.
lodge a group of squatters who had
KITSUNEGARI
moved in over the weekend. To para-
phrase his words, "there are twenty or
After Robert Modell, the Pusher, escapes from prison, Scully
thirty people here . . . women with small
and Mulder discover that there is another Pusher, a woman
children and babies . . . they're even
Modell is trying to reach.

164
 SEASON FIVE
PRISON CAFETERIA
OLD BOILER ROOM, GEORGE PEARSON cooking food in the kitchen. . .
." While
HOSPITAL, WEST 57TH AVE., VANCOUVER expressing genuine shock, had to ask I

the obvious question: "How does this

Daniel Sackheim returned to direct iiis last episode of affect our arrangement? IVly paint crew
The X-Files in Vancouver. The technical survey lasted a needs to get started this afternoon." His
record-breaking twelve hours. reply was chilling. "Maybe we don't have
After dismissing at least ten possible prison cafeteria an arrangement. Call me back in two
locations, a local hospital's vacant boiler facility that was hours. have to go now."
I

being used to store derelict equipment was finally chosen. called him back at 2 p.m. to find him
I

Its main attractions were the lattice-framed windows, cin- in his office and in a more philosophical

derblock walls, and balcony which looked like a guard- mood. The squatters had been coaxed to
patrol station. To create the prison cafeteria set, all of the leave and calm had been restored. "How

equipment had to be removed, the walls painted, wire badly do you need this location?" he
asked. "Is there somewhere else you can
mesh fencing installed, and the kitchen and lunch tables
go? You know, really don't need this
I

dressed.
kind of publicity." He then explained that
This location became Father Gregory's church in
the squatters were really protesters
"All Souls" (5x17).
attempting to draw attention to the issue
The facility was just being cleared out when the techni-
of a lack housing in the
of affordable
cal survey bus arrived. Underneath all the junk was a
area. The he needed was a
last thing
series of concrete protrusions. Filming was only five days
high-profile television show drawing
away and the intrusions needed to be removed. At a cost
attention to the situation. I replied that
of nearly $1,500, jackhammers solved the problem. After there was, by now, nowhere else we
the concrete dust settled, power washers removed all evi-
could go, given the prep schedule and
dence and the walls and ceiling were painted. When the
our first day of filming, which was five
location was prepped and ready for shooting, its appeal
was easy to see. And the site didn't have to be returned
X) working days away. "I'll talk with my part-
ner. Call me
back in one hour," he said.
toits pre-shooting state. Only set dressing had to be
At 3 p.m. we spoke again. To the
removed.
owner's credit — and our benefit — he
On shoot day, David and Gillian accepted an decided to let us proceed, on the condi-
invitation to visit patients at Pearson Hospital. tion that The X-Files provide round-the-
clock security on the property —
commencing immediately — for the dura-

SPORTING GOODS STORE tion of to be

our presence, which was
GREAT OUTDOORS, 201 LONSDALE AVE. an hour, we had
fifteen days. Within half

NORTH VANCOUVER our keys and the art department and

paint crew were on-site by 4 p.m.
We couldn't locate a sporting goods store that might Security reported that, over the next
look like it was in a small town. As prep time closed in, few days, protesters made late-night vis-
executive producer BobGoodwin insisted that a decision its to the hospital, essentially to taunt the

be made immediately. The exterior chase and police guards. On one occasion, the police
drive-up scenes required street lock-up during business were called in \when a break-in was
We settled on a store in
hours, restricting our options. attempted. By the weekend before film-
North Vancouver situated on a controllable street. Its ing, all \was quiet. Word had evidently

exterior scale was right, but the interior required major reached the street that further attempts
at occupancy would be futile. The first of
dressing to reflect more of a runners and t-shirts type of
two days of Main Unit filming passed,
outlet.
a/most without incident.
Second Unit had to return to this location the
following week, as Main Unit had forgotten to You better get over here right away.

capture an establishing shot.

165
X Marks the Spot

SCHIZOGENY
This ominous message from my assis-
tant appeared on my voicemail at The past haunts a woman counselling teenage children who
approximately 7:45 p.m. Within five min- appear to be victims of abuse, and who are linked to the
utes, I was on location. So were twenty strange deaths of their parents.
or thirty placard-toting protesters, a tele-
vision news crew, and sixteen police offi-

cers. Production had ground to a halt, as

ORCHARD
we were filming night exteriors and the HAZELGROVE FARMS, FORT LANGLEY
protesters were standing in the back- STAGE, LION'S GATE STUDIOS
ground of our shot. While the police fig-

ured out how best to resolve the situa- "Schizogeny" was known amongst the crew as the killer

tion, first assistant director Vladimir tree episode. Not only was Lisa's house chosen partly
Stefoff— who was fuming over the delay because a large willow tree stood in close proximity to the

— approached the group and offered upstairs window of this two-storey clapboard farmhouse -
them a choice. a window from which Lisa's father is pulled to his death -
So far, filming had been disrupted for but an additional hero limb measuring more than twenty-
almost an hour and, with an 1 1 p.m. feet was affixed to the tree to create a more sinister and
neighbourhood curfew looming, he was believable culprit.
nervous that this incident might cost us The night scenes in the orchard - those in which a
our day. As Stefoff would later relate, "I character is dragged to his death beneath the mud by a
told them that if they refused to move, we killer root - were both time-consuming and tricky to stage.
[the crew] would be here all night . . . and It was therefore decided to recreate a portion of the
the next night and the next night after orchard on a soundstage to give production maximum
that . . . until we completed our work. If,
control over all elements of filming, including the weather.
however, they moved to the opposite cor- The construction department built a large, elevated
ner now, we would complete our work
and be gone, giving them a chance to do t) platform to accommodate the actor's demise beneath the
mud. The greens department trucked in 200 hazelnut trees
what they had to do." - greensman Frank Haddad bought an orchard for $1,000 -
Stefoff cuts an imposing swath at the
and "planted" them in pre-cut holes in the platform, which
best of times, all the more so when
was then covered with dirt and leaves. Blacks were hung
angry. One by one, the protesters moved
around the perimeter of this remarkable set to simulate
across the by the
street, followed closely
night and hide the soundstage walls. The pit into which
a paddywagon, at which point
arrival of
the actor disappeared was then filled with sterile peat
they vanished into the night.
moss and topsoil.
Stefoff made the ten o'clock news and
filming continued without further incident
Once this episode was completed, the trees were selec-
tively stripped of dead wood and recycled for subsequent
for the remainder of this day and the
next. Additional Second Unit work the episodes, until they dried out to the point of being unusable.

following week went unhindered.

Greensman Frank Haddad and

Rob
construction co-ordinator
Maier recreated the hazelnut
orchard on a sound stage with 200
hazelnut trees, which were recy-
cled for use on later episodes. By
the end of the season, only twigs
remained.
A hazelnut orchard recreated on a soundstage at North Shore Studios
for "Schizogeny" (5x09).

166
 SEASON FIVE
CHINGA
Car Pool (TP)
Scully investigates a series of bizarre deaths in a small Maine
While filming scenes for "Schizogeny"
town, in which a little girl's doll is the culprit.
(5x09) at a farmhouse in one of our
rural municipalities, the local police force
SUPERMARKET provided us with a few moments of off-
SHOP EASY, 2535 SHAUGHNESSY ST. set humour. Two officers had been
PORT COQUITLAM booked for traffic control on the country
road the house. Both officers
in front of
We needed a supermarket for an unusual self-mutilation
subsequently arrived in one cruiser.
scene and selected Shop Easy in Port Coquitlam. Filming
was early December and very cold.
It
not only required store closure prior to Christmas, but
Even the muddy fields and shoulders of
involved stripping an entire aisle and lining it with stand-
the road had frozen solid by sundown,
up freezers to reflect images. Two days prior to prep, set
which at least made the parking of work
dec discovered that their freezer units were too wide to fit
trucks more efficient.
through the store doors. We had to make arrangements to
suggested to the officers that they
I

remove the front windows of the store so a crane could

attempt to procure a second vehicle, as
be used to move the freezers through the openings. This we would be filming late into the night
became an overnight job for set dec, locations, and the and the temperatures were expected to
store staff. drop well below zero. After some discus-
During the filming of the self-mutilation scene, sion, they were released from set to
a customer, who had somehow found her way onto make the run back to the police vehicle
set, meandered through the aisles. She stopped, compound to get another car.
looked around in confusion, then darted from A half-hour later, the first officer
the store. showed up in the original cruiser and
The shot of Scully driving an open convertible had been
established on a relatively sunny day the
shooting this pull-up scene, which in the script takes
week prior to D informed
age, there had been
finding a
me

second
that, due to
some
a vehicle short-

vehicle. Not to worry,

difficulty in

place minutes later. On film day the skies were overcast though, his partner would be along
and rain was imminent, but it was imperative not only to presently.
complete this scene on this particular day, but to ensure When the second officer finally
that the two shots would match. To make the transition arrived, it was at the wheel of a van
from sun to cloud, filming in a covered environment was used for impaired driving roadchecks,
needed, and at the last minute, a covered gas station was \A/hich was evidently all he could get his
proposed. A Save On Gas in North Vancouver was our hands on. I thought it a brilliant move in

only saving grace. The end result is that when Scully goes terms of traffic control. Cars speeding
to get gas, the weather changes. along this road were apt to show scant
This episode was written by horror guru Stephen regard for a garden-variety police cruis-
King, although Chris revised the entire episode as it er, but when faced with the possibility of

originally read like a feature film script, and would a roadside breathalyzer check, the level
have been impossible to shoot within the eight-day of co-operation went way up.

schedule.

favorite tool

?««" chosen to

^"^fcw for this

Shopping The X-Files way {"Ciiingn" (5x10)).

167
X Marks the Spot

KILLSWITCH

Blow-Up a Deux ctp) Scully and Mulder combat an artificial intelligence which has
taken over orbiting weapons platforms in order to survive.
There's an unwritten rule in location
managing; Nover show a director a
location lie/stie cannot use. The script SWINGBRIDGE
for "Killswitch" (5x1 1), written by
WESTHAM ISLAND BRIDGE, CANOE PASS
William Gibson, called for three explo-
sions and a shoot-out in a diner. The
protocol to detonate explosive devices While on a location technical survey for "Schizogeny"
within Vancouver city limits has (5x09), our bus passed over an old swingspan bridge.
become necessarily stringent over the
Chris leaned over and whispered his intention to feature
years, meaning that a great deal of the old bridge in an upcoming episode. Moments later, 1

preparation and lead time is required.

was on my cell phone with Lorna Leslie at the B.C.
had applied to blow up a cargo con-
I

Department of Highways, establishing the parameters

tainer at one of the container facilities
within which we could be use the structure.
on the Vancouver waterfront. For maxi-
As this bridge was the sole access to an island farming
mum visual effect, the explosion was
community in the Fraser River, any disruption of traffic
scheduled for night. We anticipated that
would have to be late at night and kept to a minimum.
special effects co-ordinator Dave
Notification to local residents began two weeks prior to
Gauthier's "recipe" would propel a fire-
filming. The real problem for us occured with the
ball150 feet into the night sky. After
choosing the location, we scheduled a mechanics of the bridge itself, originally built in 1908.
meeting with the City of Vancouver, the The swingspan was added in 1912 when it was discov-
Vancouver Police, the Vancouver Fire ered that the bridge was too low to permit the passage of
Department, the Vancouver Port fishing vessels. The tiny five-horsepower engine which

Corporation, the B.C. Film Commis- t) rotates the platter cannot be operated with vehicles

sion, representatives from the contain- parked on the swingspan.

er terminal, the explosives division of We were also warned that no more than five people
Natural Resources Canada, and the could stand on the swingspan while it swung, and that
production company. Discussion includ- they should stand as close to the centre as possible.
ed technical aspects of the explosion These technical points were questioned by certain mem-
(how much detonator cord, how much bers of the production, who were determined that the
black powder, time delays, size of fire- scene be shot as written since, in the original draft,
ball), logistical issues such as contain- Scully's car is trapped on the swingspan as it rotates. On
ment of debris, Shockwaves, advance an early scout, director Rob Bowman leaned over the
public notification, crowd control, addi- bridge railing to watch his rather expensive sunglasses
tional 91 1 staffing (to handle the slip from his head and disappear into the murky river. If
increased volume of calls), and traffic you believe in omens, what happened next will come as
control on both North Shore bridges.
no surprise.
An agreement in principle was On the day of the technical survey, the bridge operator
reached and all concerned seemed
was asked to swing the span to demonstrate the physics
satisfied. The outright refusal that came of the structure to our various department heads, who
from the Vancouver Port Corporation
had all crowded to the edge of the span. As if by divine
several days later was completely
example, the bridge swung open, then jammed. Several
unanticipated. had assumed — per-
I

minutes passed as the operator manually reset the system.

haps overenthusiastically — that we had
Evidently, the weight of fifteen people combined with
already cleared any obstacles.
the momentum of the swing had caused a misalignment
A senior official with the Harbour- which, while not uncommon, created an inconvenient
and time-consuming delay. Oddly enough, this little mis-
adventure inspired a major change in the way the scene

168
 SEASON FIVE
was finally writtenand blocked, as the possibility of
Gillian becoming stranded on a swingspan in the middle
of a river late at night was a risk no one wished to take.
A storypoint in this scene occurs when Scully and master's Office informed me that the
Esther realize that an armed military satellite has locked Port had decided that such an activity
its sites onto the laptop computer in their possession, was not in their "best interests."
and is about to vapourize them with a particle beam. As was, the cast and crew of The
it

Esther throws the laptop off the bridge, causing the X-Files was about to take a well-
weapon to shift its aim. The beam narrowly misses them deserved two-week Christmas holiday,
and a plume of steam and water erupts from the river. which gave me some wiggle room to
Permission to stage this effect in the river took the better come up with an alternative plan. Other
part of thirty days to obtain, and involved agencies as container facilities — not on VPC prop-
diverse as the Coast Guard, the Fraser River Harbour erty — were considered, and it was

Commission, the Fraser River Estuary IVIanagement Program, finally decided to truck in as many con-

Environment Canada, the Department of Highways, and the tainers as needed to an alternate site,

Department of Fisheries. The overriding concerns were with the massive back lot at BFI Recycling
in Burnaby. As a location, BFI was
navigational hazards and possible damage to the foreshore

of this fish-bearing estuary. Modifications to Dave Gauthier's remote and easily controllable, since it
fronted the Fraser River and \A/as bor-
special effects proposal were made as requested before
dered by either Industrial or undevel-
filming was allowed to proceed.
oped land.
I explained the difficulties I was experiencing in secur-
ing permission from the various agencies to one of the
A new meeting was held, this time
with City of Burnaby officials replacing
residents of a cluster of houseboats moored 100 feet
their City of Vancouver counterparts.
downstream from the bridge. With a chuckle, he pointed
The filming of all scenes leading up to
to thehouseboats bobbing in the gentle current. "Just
the explosion were then shot as sched-
where do you think the toilets on those things empty,
anyway?" He wished me luck and walked away. t) uled at the original container terminal,
while Second Unit was dispatched to
This episode was written by Vancouver writer BFI to film the explosion sequence. The
William Gibson. entireprocess was hence doubly
The only other swingspans in the Lower IVIainiand expensive and very time-consuming,
straddle the Pitt River, the Fraser River at Annacis but went off without incident.
and the middle arm of the Fraser River in
Island, As a footnote, happened upon an
I

Richmond. None of these were ever considered due article in a local community newspaper
to their high traffic volumes. some months later concerning safety
issues and the handling of dangerous
goods on the Vancouver waterfront.
RUINED FARMHOUSE With the growing number of residents
2981 41 B ST., DELTA buying lofts and condos immediately
adjacent to the docks and rail lines,
special interest groups were busy lob-
This location required three specific components. In the bying the Canadian government in an
episode, Mulder approaches a ramshackle farmhouse, effort to curtail certain practices on the
stopping his car on the country road out front. He notices waterfront which they perceived as
a utility pole on the far side of the road, from which an dangerous to the immediate neighbour-
unusually hefty service cable is strung. He follows the hood.
cable to the farmhouse and into an adjacent stand of This would seem to suggest the
trees, where he disappears. Emerging on the other side presence of political motives which our
several minutes later, he spots a lone trailer sitting in a presence could not help but highlight.
The service cable leads directly to the trailer.
clearing.
The farmhouse we chose was indeed abandoned and
visually perfect, but the stand of trees beside it was
169
X Marks the Spot
choked with blackberry bushes and the adjacent fields
were mudpits. Employing creative geography, a stand of
trees and a clearing in which to blow up the trailer were
found at our favourite recurring location near the
Boundary Bay Airport (see Blow-Up a Deux). Director Rob
Bowman simply walked Mulder around the corner of the
house and let him disappear. The camera then picked
him up emerging from the trees at Boundary Bay.
Two utility poles existed more or less where we wanted
for better and for worse. Either that or,
them - on the roadside and in the front yard of the farm-
as the Vancouver Port Corporation
house. With the help of BC Hydro, hundreds of feet of
explained to us, they were concerned
cable were strung by the set dec department. Other than
with the effect such an explosion might
using the interior for a camera position, no filming was
have on the largely non-English-speak-
done in the house, although it was cleaned thoroughly
ing crews of foreign vessels in port and
upon completion of filming. Moments before the camera
the inability to convey to these cre\A/s
rolled, art director Gary Allen used his creative touch to
the nature of our activities.
carefully break the kitchen window, a storypoint in the
A more comical situation developed
script.
after filming our favourite explosion for
"Killswitch" (5x11). had arranged that
I
Known locally as Read House and built around 1898 by
our hero trailer be blown up on a large immigrants from England, the Delta Heritage Advisory
tract of uninhabited land adjacent to Commission has strongly recommended it - built in an
the Boundary Bay Airport. Once again, architectural style known as "four-square" - be preserved
the necessary meetings were held and as a heritage landmark. As of the late 1990s, the farm-
subsequent precautions taken. Given house remained unoccupied, a target of repeated vandal-

our proximity to both the airport and ism.

the freeway, we decided that the opti- This location was also used in "The Post-IVlodern
mal time for this explosion was t> Prometheus" (5x06), although it was the huge barn
between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., when at the back of the property which received the
both air and freeway traffic would be camera's attention. .,^^^jjff

light or non-existent. Similarly, it was

still enough in the evening that
early
whatever sound might be heard would
BAD BLOOD
not wake those living on nearby farms.
Scully and Mulder remember, very differently, the events that
The explosion went off flawlessly at
led to the death of a teenager suspected of being a vampire in
9:59 p.m. with a fireball erupting 100
rural Texas.
feet into the sky and dissipating within
ten seconds. The attending police and
fire deparment crews inspected the site

to their satisfaction and went home,

leaving the production company to
clean up as much as possible in the
darkness. My biggest concern \A/ith this

The phony graveyard tor "Bad Blood" (5x12).

170
 SEASON FIVE
PATIENT X

Mulder, now believing that alien abductions are a conspiratori-

al government cover-up, has difficulty understanding why UFO
abductees are gathering and being burned to death.

RUSKIN DAM
DEWDNEY TRUNK RD. RUSKIN
location had been the enormous new
X" marked the beginning of the final two-parter
"Patient glass hothouses being built in a field

The X-Files would shoot in the Lower Mainland. Chris about one kilometre east of our loca-
tion as the land was flat and offered no
requested a spectacular location to stage a UFO abduction
buffer. Fortunately, no shock waves
scene. He was presented with a variety of options, includ-
capable of damaging these hothouses
ing Squamish Chief Mountain, Cleveland Dam, and Stave
were produced, or so thought at theI

Lake Dam. The script ultimately reflected the industrial

time. The following afternoon, I

gothic architecture of the Ruskin Dam, and its unique

received a call from the film liaison with
setting, which incorporated a bridge approach and power-
the Corporation of Delta demanding to
house with a roadway running across the top of the dam.
know "what the hell had happened" the
In preparation for the filming of night scenes, a five-day
previous evening. She explained that
pre-rig was were placed along the
initiated. Par cans
several people, living as far as ten
bridge superstructure itself and along the base of the
miles away, had called to complain
powerstation. Eight 200K par lights were mounted on
1

about a large boom that had "shaken

the dam buttresses to illuminate the dam, spillway, and homes" at about the same time as our
reservoir below. Twelve redheads were then mounted under explosion had occurred. One resident
the bridge to crosslight the reservoir and dam. Four 4K
par lights provided further illumination for the reservoir
and spillway. Finally, three lighting cranes - each carrying
D called me, explaining that an antique
plate
as a
had fallen off his wall
result of the
and broken
Shockwave from the
two 18K HMI lights - were strategically placed around the explosion.
perimeter of the site to fill in and supplement the lighting As curious as found this, having
I

already established. observed nothing overwhelming from

BC Hydro, owner and operator of the site, allowed us to where I stood at "ground zero," I felt

control the flow of water through the whichdam gates, obliged to replace the plate, which was
made for a spectacular visual effect when
standing on the gratefully accepted. To this day, I do not
adjacent bridge. On both episodes, helicopters were used believe that the boom reported by
for night lighting effects and filming, a disruption which numerous residents of the Delta area
annoyed some local residents. had anything to do with our activities
that night. Perhaps was a result of an
it

uncharacteristic thunderstorm that had

rocked the same neighbourhoods the
previous night with similar results.

The flow of water from the /a/?e above was controlled by six gates in the dam.
Opening each gate five centimeters (about two inches) - which produced a spec-
tacular waterfall - cost $200 and our final bill - for water alone - was $ ,500.
1

171
X Marks the Spot
Well before filming commenced, a town meeting was
held at the Hydro offices in Ruskin, involving the B.C.
Film Commission's community affairs officer Tom Crowe,
BC Hydro staff, local residents, Louisa, and me. Aside
from explaining in detail our filming requirements, we
listened intently as individuals in the packed conference
room expressed their concerns and, in some cases,
opposition to our presence. In a meeting which at times
grew heated, allegations of misrepresentation and past
broken promises by film crews and Hydro were
staff alike
raised and addressed.
Par cans/lights: use parabolic
reflectors to focus the light.
As a gesture of good faith. The X-Files agreed to a size-
able donation in support of a local playground restoration
fund. A hundred or so autographed photos of David and
Gillian were also dispensed within a two-minute period.

Redheads: a 1 K tungsten light;

create light similar to household

lighting.

Ruskin Dam bridge used in "Patient X" (5x13) and "The Red and the
Black" (5xM).

THE RED AND THE BLACK

Scully and Mulder learn that alien rebels are burning UFO
abductees in an attempt to thwart alien colonists.

RUSKIN DAM
DEWDNEY TRUNK RD. RUSKIN

Prepping the crashed UFO for "The Red and

the Black" (5x14). As this show was a continuation of "Patient X" (5x13), the
Ruskin Dam was again a key location. Creating the lighting
affect above the Ruskin Dam bridge for the night-time UFO
abduction scene was restricted by the location and by the
time it would take to film the complicated abduction
sequences. It was impossible to position cranes close
enough to the bridge to give the range, height, and flexibility

to create the complicated effect, so we decided to build a

replica of the Ruskin Dam bridge on a set, in a space that

could accommodate its sixty-foot height. The only available
complex in the Lower Mainland was a seven-storey "A"
Frame stage in Delta, so it was booked for a month.

172
 SEASON FIVE

Ruskin Dam bridge setpiece: an exercise in creative geography

( "Patient X" (5x13) and "The Red and the Black" (5x14)).

UFO CRASH SITE

STOKES PIT, SOUTH SURREY

The crash scene was to include a blazing trail of fire

leading to the flaming UFO. The ideal setting would have
been a large rural field accentuated by low-lying brush.
The brush would have to be trimmed and slightly charred X)
in order to create the illusion of a skid line, and the
-y >- ^"'*
ground would have to be excavated to bury propane lines.
Additional space was required for a construction camp.
On February 11, construction set up camp in Stokes Pit
and began to build the UFO. To capture the real essence
of the UFO, metal sheets - not metallic-painted plywood
- were used for the exterior. With the exorbitant costs UFO crash site ("The Red and the Black
associated with metal construction, the position of the (5x14)).

UFO in the earth was modified to reveal only two-thirds

of the craft, saving construction the ordeal and the cost of
building an entire ship. With very little prep time, one of
the largest tents in the Lower Mainland was set-up on-
site to accommodate the construction of the ship. Just
shortly after the tent was erected, it collapsed as a result
of gale-force winds. Although a valuable day of prep was
lost, new tents were erected and work proceeded. A trail
burn was created by the greens department and a
depression in the gravel was excavated for the final
placement of the stationary craft. Special effects rigged
the trail burn and UFO with a maze of propane lines.
Although Stokes Pit is situated in a remote area of
Surrey, city noise bylaws are still applicable: nothing too
loud after 11 p.m. Most of the evening was spent filming
the Alien Bounty Hunter climbing a fence and by 10:30

173
 "

X Marks the Spot

p.m. was apparent that the explosion would have to be
Map Game ctp)
it

delayed. Because city officials were on site, the curfew

Coming up with new and unusual loca- was relaxed for an additional half an hour. At approxi-
tions with which needs
to satisfy the story mately 11:30 p.m., the explosion went off with a muffled
a visually-oriented series such as The X- thump, not the big bang that was anticipated, and the
Files v\iaLS one thing, but getting a shoot-
giant fireball and the metallic glow of the ship were lost
ing crew of sixty-plus people to these
in a cloud of smoke. The site was finally wrapped three
locations — week in, week out — was a
weeks later.
task of a different sort. David sometimes
This location doubled as an Alaskan oil well jn''*"'^'''
joked that he suspected some kind of
"Terma" (4x10). .:.^j^
kickback arrangement between us (as
location managers) and the most farflung
municipalities surrounding Vancouver to
entice shows like The X-Files to film
there. This because many of the story-
lines dictated remote settings not to be
found ten minutes from Vancouver.
In David's case, at least he didn't have to
drive those distances himself, although
at times (the drive to Ruskin Dam for
"Patient X" (5x13)and "The Red and the
Black" (5x14) was a good hour each
way) he must have felt like he might just
as well have.
Well-crafted maps were a fixture of
each crew member's day, as was break-
fast off the catering truck upon arrival on
location for a day's work. This
say that problems never arose. Signs
is not to t Carpenters building the UFO
"The Red and the Black" (5x14)).
on location ("Patient X" (5x13),

down in heavy winds or

could blow FORT WIEKAMP
become obscured by fog. Over-zealous B.C. PARKS WORKS YARD, BASE OF
municipal road crews sometimes SEYMOUR MOUNTAIN, NORTH VANCOUVER
removed signs from the highway as fast
as they were installed, claiming that they An entrance to a military-type base was required in
were a dangerous distraction to other North Vancouver. A quick perusal of photofiles under the
motorists. On at least one memorable category of "Works Yards" yielded a suitable option.
occasion ("Conduit" (1x03)), the location Seymour Resorts occupied half of the site and B.C. Parks
van carrying both production assistants used the other half. The open sheds were filled with
and the requisite location signage to be equipment which had to be relocated so we could park
placed at intervals on the highway lead- military vehicles in their place. After the laborious tasks
ing to Lake Okobogee (aka Buntzen of removing row upon row of ski lifts, installing a wire
Lake) became lost itself and that, com- mesh gate, cleaning up the site, and then placing a trailer,
bined with a small error on the map, left
an austere, militaristic compound was created. Another
several crew members driving around small set for The X-Files.
the countryside wondering why they'd
missed the turn-off. Having said that, one
must admit that some individuals are TRAVELLERS
simply directionally impaired, and no
amount of cartography or signage will Mulder, a year before he begins work on the X-Files, investi-
change that. gates the death of a man who was a victim of xenotransplanta-
It was asunny morning in late
crisp, tion experiments by the government in the 1 950s and who,
February 1998 as the crew assembled when he was killed, whispered, "Mulder.

174
 SEASON FIVE
MIND'S EYE

A blind woman who can see, in her mind's eye, everything her Guest star Lili Taylor was
killer father sees, is investigated by Mulder and Scully. nominated for an Emmy for
"Mind's Eye" (5x16).

BUS DEPOT
HASTINGS PARK RACECOURSE,
EXHIBITION PARK, VANCOUVER on a quiet country road near the
Canada-U.S. border to film a scene for
Bus depot options in the Vancouver area are limited, "Travellers" (5x15). Given the fact that, at
particularly when looking for a depot that resembles an the end of Season Four, we had filmed
Atlantic City terminal. Vancouver's downtown terminal "Demons" (4x23) at a deserted farm-
was too upscale and alternative buildings were consid- house less than a mile from where we
ered and dismissed. At this point creative location plan- now stood, finding this location should
ning was warranted. The race track terminal was sug- have been unproblematic.
gested, dismissed, suggested again, and reconsidered. But there was indeed a problem.
When suggested for the third time, an appointment to David's stand-in, Jaap Broeker, was
view the site was already in the works. Buses could be nowhere to be found, and we were about
parked outside the front doors, a simple flat across one to block the scene. Other crew members

wall would partition the area from the remainder of the had passed Jaap enroute, driving his
building, and with rows of seats and lockers, all one had
Renault Le Car, so we knew he was in
the vicinity. Just about the time received
to do was relax and wait for the next bus.
I

a call from the production office

announcing that a somewhat irate Jaap
was on the other line on his cell phone
asking for directions, a production assis-
t) tant at the highway exit radioed set say-
ing that he had just seen Jaap drive by,
heading for the U.S. border crossing. I

then got on the line with Jaap and turned

him in the right direction. Upon his arrival
on set, the scene became comical as
Jaap realized that he alone had missed
a well-marked exit on a clear day, no
small feat considering the number of
times crew members had found their way
Dolly grip Peter Wilkie ("Mind's Eye" (5x16)).
to really obscure locations under truly
adverse circumstances.
ALL SOULS Maps to locations are customarily
drawn from the production office to the

Scully experiences visions of Emily as she investigates the location. The following day's map was
deaths of young women who are found in positions of suppli- changed to reflect Jaap's own home rel-
cation, their eyes burned out of their sockets. ative to the location. It became The Jaap
Broek&r Memorial Map. This incident
spawned a set joke, as Jaap had been
ST.JOHN'S CHURCH cast as a television psychic in "Clyde
ST.AUGUSTINE'S PARISH, Bruckman's Final Repose" (3x04). Ask
2028 WEST 7TH AVE., VANCOUVER The Stupendous Yappi to locate a mur-
derer or predict the future — no problem
When this script was released to production and I began — but never rely on this man to find his
to think of possible locations to play as Scully's church in way to set in the morning.

175
X Marks the Spot
fictional New England, this parish topped the list.

Photos were presented to director Allen Coulter and a

copy of the script delivered to the Catholic Archdiocese,
whose permission would be required to film here.
As a safety measure, several other churches were
surveyed while we awaited word from the Monseigneur.
The confessing Father was played None had the ornate physical presence of this lovely
by producer J. P. Finn, who reprised brick structure and we were fortunate that the script
a role he first played as Chaplain was finally approved for filming.
on "The List" (3x05).
Initially, only exterior scenes involving Scully and

Starkey were shot here. Second Unit was subsequently

sent back to film additional interior scenes, written
after a rough edit of the episode had been viewed. The
church housed several confessional booths, which were
The "White" Side of Town ctp) too small and awkward to permit the filming of the
scenes as written. The art and construction depart-
Location surveys turn up all manner
ments subsequently designed and built our own con-
of things. One memorable morning we
were scouting locations for Father
fessional in the church hall next door, but moved it
Gregory's church in "All Souls" (5x17).
elsewhere to accommodate scheduling demands. Those
The survey group had just said good- scenes were shot at a later date in the Pacific National

bye to Crusty, the somewhat bizarre Exhibition forum, where the set was rebuilt.

"manager" of the old Station Street

Theatre (and yes, he did look a little FATHER GREGORY' S CHURCH
like a live-action version of The

Simpsons' Crusty the Clown) and had

OLD BOILER ROOM, GEORGE PEARSON
crossed the street. As we filed past a
parked car, looked down to see the
I

lone occupant frantically shovelling a

t HOSPITAL,

The basic concept

WEST 57TH
for Father
AVE., VANCOUVER
Gregory's Church
involved anything but a conventional church, as Father
small pile of white powder up his nose,
Gregory was anything but a conventional cleric. The
completely oblivious to the immediate
word "makeshift" came up more than once in attempt-
presence of eleven strangers.
ing to describe director Allan Coulter's sense of what
Much later, would recall this
I

this location should be.

moment to an irate hotel ovjner, who
Various halls and vacant warehouses were scouted,
was complaining bitterly (before the
as was the old Station Street Theatre, before the subtle
event, of course) of loss of parking for
suggestion was made that perhaps we should re-visit a
his patrons, as we had elected to film
location used by Louisa as the Prison Cafeteria in
our bad neighbourhood scenes here.
"Kitsunegari" (5x08). This location had left a less-than-
When suggested
I that the person in
pleasant taste in the mouth of producer |.P.Finn, who
the car might not be the type of clien-
tele condusive to repeat business (they could not forget the substantial sum of money spent in
have this nasty habit of dying sudden- transforming an old boiler room into a cafeteria. I

ly), he immediately became a more reasoned that the money had already been spent on
reasonable human being and agreed to this location and that the real task lay in limiting the

a wait and see approach. "damage" this time around.

Allan immediately fell in love with this old building,
although the exterior offered only very limited angles
due to its residential surroundings, which looked
nothing like a down-and-dirty inner city neighbour-
hood. And while very little was done to the interior -
set dressing was minimal - the front exterior of the
building was aged to indicate the desperate plight of

176
 SEASON FIVE
Father Gregory's ministry.
Ironically, the lovely high windows that were so much a
part of this location's attraction presented a problem for
production. With so much interior day work scheduled
here, there were concerns that the light would shift so
Plugging: the practice of "removing"
dramatically during the day that the grips and electrics
an unwanted door or window by
would end up fighting a losing battle to maintain continu-
installing a painted wall.
ity. That, or they would simply lose the light entirely, as it

was only late March.

The solution to this dilemma involved plugging a couple
of thewindows entirely, while building special light-dif-
fusers tomount over the others. And while the results
were mixed, the overall effect was achieved with the help
of two days of overcast skies. Father Gregory's Church
may not have been ornate, but it certainly had soul.

THE PINE BLUFF VARIANT

Mulder goes undercover to infiltrate a militia group that wants

to infect the public with a deadly blotoxin.
Tom Braidwood on location at the London
Guard Motel ("The Pine Bluff Variant" (5x18)).
VOGUE THEATRE
DUNBAR THEATRE,
4555 DUNBAR ST., VANCOUVER

This neighbourhood movie theatre had recently closed

X)
and The X-Files seized the opportunity to use it. Because
so many days were required to prep, shoot, and wrap,
there were no other options. Luckily, the Dunbar Theatre
featured the architectural and design characteristics of a
small-town cinema situated within an appropriate neigh-
bourhood context. Special effects make-up artist Toby
Lindala created the deceased theatre audience in his
shop. When he brought them to set, there was nowhere
in the theatre to store the "fake" cadavers, so he placed
them in the craft services room. IVIany of the crew lost
their appetites that day.

MULDER'S APARTMENT EXTERIOR

1010 SALSBURY ST.,
VANCOUVER
Mulder's original apartment exterior on York Street had
a change in property management and even though the
apartment had been established through the years, the
new fee structure of $5,000 for filming a short exterior
scene was undeniably extortionist and a greedy attempt
to hold the film industry at ransom. I informed the new
management representative that by requesting such fees,

177
X Marks the Spot

they could kiss the local film industry goodbye. The pro-
ducers and director - equally outraged - agreed, and an
alternative apartment was selected.

BANK
BANK OF CANADA BUILDING,
900 WEST HASTINGS ST., VANCOUVER

The majority of banking institutions welcome filming

When David and Gillian arrived (after business hours, of course), but depicting the insti-
at the bank location ("The Pine tution in a robbery situation is generally frowned upon.
Bluff Variant" (5x18)), curious The bank used in this episode was once the Bank of
crowds started gathering. Canada Federal Reserve. The vault in the basement is
probably the only structure in Vancouver that could
withstand a major earthquake.
The bank, vacant at the time, provided the perfect
venue for the robbery and as well allowed for daytime
The mother and child at the bank filming. The interior layout was adapted for the action

during the holdup scene ("The sequence and the script revised to reflect the location.
Pine Bluff Variant" (5x18)) are the When discussing Mulder's exterior drive-up scene, direc-
wife and daughter of Todd Pittson. tor Rob Bowman was informed of the parameters of street
closure restrictions and time constraints for traffic lock-
ups; traffic had to "flow." In his usual optimistic manner,
Rob acknowledged the guidelines and told us not to

t worry, that everything would be "hunky dory."

The exterior scene included an entourage of FEMA
experts and police and SWAT team members. Mulder
screeches to a halt on the Hornby Street side of the bank.
For picture purposes, barricades were placed on the
street and sidewalks to cordon off the the area and rescue
vehicles were randomly parked along the street. The four
police officers on duty assisted this complex scene by
detouring traffic and giving us exclusive access to the
street. By afternoon rush hour, however, the street was
cleared of our presence, and regular traffic flow resumed.
On the following day at this location, there was only
one police officer on site since there was very little exteri-
or filming involved. As the exterior establishing shot of
the bank evolved into a larger scene at the last minute,
we requested a second police officer. In the interim, the
officer on duty discovered that $40,000 in American
SWAT team ready for action.
dollars lined the top layer of the pallet of "fake" cash in
the vault and reported this news to the police depart-
ment. The dreaded call to shut down production was
received and with Constable Bob Young absent from the
department, I quickly resolved the problem by informing
officials that a second officer was on route to provide
additional traffic assistance and that the officers would
remain on site for the rest of the shooting day. Rightly so.
As the police explained, one officer could not possibly

178
 SEASON FIVE
deal with an armed robbery should there be any attempt
toabscond with the $40,000. Although the props depart-
ment decided to conceal the "real" money on set, within
minutes of call-time, news of the money had spread like
wildfire.
When I asked the producers why ! wasn't informed of
the presence of money, I was told there was a need for
secrecy.

i(IK«9afiS«

The Kernoff House, featured in

"All Souls" (5x17), one block

Is

north of the Starn House, in the

There's real money in there.
500-block of East 1 2th St.
$40,000 worth.

FOLIE A DEUX

Office employees are preyed upon by their boss, who appears to

one employee - and Mulder - as a giant bug-like monster.

3D
STARN HOUSE
500-BLOCK EAST 11TH ST.
NORTH VANCOUVER
During the concept meeting for this episode, the words
"tract home" were used to describe this location. Over the
course of the series, "tract home" came to mean "a
neighbourhood of cookie-cutter houses," where each
home closely resembles the next in architectural style,
size, layout, and landscaping. This phrase evoked an
ideal image with screen references to the pastel commu-
nity featured in the movie Edward Scissorhands and the fic-
tional community of The Truman Show. It was an ideal
image which bore little in common with the architectural
realities of the Lower Mainland, with the exception of a
small post-Second World War community on the North
Shore called Norgate (these homes were too small) and a
suburban development in Richmond (too upscale).
After examining sixty or seventy photofiles with director
Kim Manners, we zeroed in on a suburb in North
Vancouver developed in 1989 and began a block-by-block
"Folie a Deux" (5x19).
search for a bland, modern home in which to situate our
murderous creature. Given the specific requirements for

179
X Marks the Spot
interior floorplan and position of exterior windows rela-

Lights Out (TP) tive to a clean view of the side of the house upwards to
the roofline (all in the name of monster action), the
The end "The End" (5x20) came
of
search only grew more frustrating for location scout
just minutes after 1 a.m. on April 30,
Alan Bartolic, whose obsession with the perfect house
1998. It came with a bang — a round of
fueled an unsolicited weekend scout.
gunfire from a prison guard's sidearm —
With day one of principal photography approaching
rather than a whimper. After months of
and no obvious choice in the bag, executive producer
rumour in and Chris
the local media
Bob Goodwin suggested that perhaps an older home
Carter's dramaticannouncement at the
might help create a spookier atmosphere and provide
2400 Court Motel on March 27, the end
more workable choices. This was, after all, an episode
seemed almost anticlimactic.
about a monster bug. The original concept was aban-
Anticipating an 1 1 p.m. or midnight
wrap, crew members not part of the
doned and, within hours, the location survey van had
shooting crew began arriving at Crease pulled up in front of this turn-of-the-century home in

Clinic (Riverview Hospital) in the early North Vancouver. And while it bore no resemblance to a
evening. Pulling into the parking lot at 9 "tract home," the specifics of geography were adequate

p.m., I was amazed by the array of crew to meet Kim's blocking requirements.

vehicles seldom — if ever — associated A platform was built to straddle the peaked roof,
with the shooting crew. allowing the special effects crew to assist our creature
Crew members had gathered in clus- in its ascent up the back of the house and onto the roof.

ters around the main entrance to A hole was also drilled through the overhang to permit
Crease Clinic in anticipation of the final cabling. Windows were replaced with "safety glass,"
"wrap." Notable among them were pro- care being taken not to break the fragile original stained
ducer J. P. Finn, production designer glass inserts. Hydro, telephone, and cable services to
Graeme Murray, art director Greg the house were then relocated to allow for crane shots
Loewen, construction co-ordinator and the monster's safe ascent up the back wall.
Rob Maier, props master Ken Hawryliw, t) After lengthy discussions about the look mon- of the
special effects co-ordinator Dave ster, was decided that "less was indeed better," as
it

Gauthier, assistant location manager there was an overriding concern that the monster not
Rick Fearon, set decorator Shirley
appear hokey. The onscreen monster - more shadow
Inget, costume designer Jenni Gullett,
than substance - was the product of a combination of
Chris' assistantJoanne Service, and,
an actor in Toby Lindala's bug-suit and CGI. it was
of course, Chris himself. Gillian had
nonetheless important to provide a location in which
departed half an hour earlier after deliv-
the monster's path could be incorporated into existing
ering an emotional farewell speech to
walls and ceilings while maintaining a seamless match
this, her extended Canadian family. She
with technology.
also presented each crew member with
a midnight blue bathrobe containing the
VINYLRIGHT
inscription: 1993-1998 Goodnight
Everybody I Love You — Forever G.A. 12340 HORSESHOE WAY.
The previous evening — also at Crease RICHMOND
Clinic — David had said his farewells, An armoured car ploughs through the wall of a building
presenting each crew member with a and into the cafeteria to end a hostage-taking. This was the
Chuck Taylor basketball, autographed preliminary description received from the Los Angeles
with Thanks for five years of great work.
office when asked
for any available information regard-
I had a ball.
ing this upcoming episode. There's also a house and an
While waiting for wrap, we joked and
apartment complex. Should be pretty straight-forward. The
reminisced about great feats and near
words straight-forward - heard so often during the past
disasters, and about how 777© X-Files
five years - had become code for "we hope you're well-
had transformed our lives during its five-
rested" and cause for alarm. History had proved there
was nothing straight-forward about The X-Files.
180
 SEASON FIVE
The scenes involving the armoured car necessitated
and cafeteria be
that the interior of the Vinylright office
constructed on a soundstage. Kim envisioned a low-
year sojourn in Vancouver. And while
slung, modern building located in an industrial park as a
the mood was relaxed and anticipatory,
suitable exterior and production designer Graeme Murray
the look on the faces of so many was
had proceeded accordingly. With a large build already in
that ofoverwhelming fatigue. Nobody
progress, it was imperative that the locations team find a
talked about their "next show," a major
location to match the set. There would be no modification
preoccupation with so many of us in
of the set to accommodate location problems. Kim also
the film industry.
demanded roof access for stuntmen and complete control When the final shot rang out and first
of the adjacent parking lot and street for the placement of
assistant director Tom Braidwood
picture vehicles.
called wrap from the end of a long,
After discussing three possibilities, we decided on loca- very familiar hall\way on the main floor
tion scout David Caughlan's find, a new and unoccupied of Crease Clinic, a line formed as crew
building large enough to permit the construction of an members shook hands and hugged
The physical location of
interior set (Mrs. Loach's kitchen). one another. Equipment was quickly
the property in numerous
a large industrial park with loaded into trucks and the crew assem-
vehicular access points allowed for detours on the adja- bled what had once been a morgue
in

cent street with only minimal disruption to neighbouring set for an impromptu celebration which
businesses. As luck would have it, the shooting day fell included speeches, a champagne
on Easter IVlonday, making this normally busy area very toast, and the requisite photo opportu-
quiet. nities with Chris and director Bob

Near-disaster came when the property owner disap- Goodwin.

peared on urgent business just as the location agreement A casual exodus of very tired human
was to be signed. With construction co-ordinator Rob beings followed, and In less than an
Maier camped outside my office - his well-worn quip, hour, it was all over.

"You're killin' me, bud," very appropriate here - and no t>

appealing back-up location in place, I spent two very
anxious days by the telephone. The owner was finally
located and a copy of the agreement faxed to him for sig-
nature. His family members were, it turned out, fans of
the show.
While Main Unit was filming scenes at this location,
the Second Unit crew - in radio range and less than
a mile away - were busy filming scenes on a rural
road which would later appear in The X-Files
feature film, Fight the Future.

I I tl

Todd and Chris at wrap ("The End" (5x20)).

The big rescue in "Folic a Deux" (5x1 9).

181
X Marks the Spot

THE END

A boy with the ability to read minds is proof of a genetic link

between humans and an alien race.

SPORTS ARENA
LOCATION: GENERAL MOTORS PLACE,
800 GRIFFITHS WAY, VANCOUVER

Now
that the show's tenure in Vancouver was officially
over,"The End" was an appropriate title for this episode.
The tribute^to Vancouver was masterminded by Chris,
who initially suggested GiV! Place as the ideal location,
but given the cost considerations for one day of filming a
chess match scene, alternative venues were scouted, but
ultimately rejected. The script - without naming it -
clearly called for GIVI Place, and the stadium proved to be
a perfect and most spectacular location.
Chris couldn't believe the crowd size at the CM The stadium booking was a gamble. We had committed
Place Finale. to the largest venue in Vancouver knowing that a few
thousand seats needed to be filled, and knowing that 500
extras would not suffice. Organizing the event was a
major undertaking. A media specialist was hired to pro-
mote the event and hopefully draw a few thousand fans
to be spectators, to witness the filming of the final scenes,

t) and to see
members.
Chris, Gillian, David, and other cast and crew

It good thing that we prepared for large numbers

was a
of people, because more than 10,000 people turned out
for the event, some having lined up as early as 7 a.m. for
the 5 p.m. opening. Over 100 event security staff and five
police officers were hired for crowd control, and they
were forced to turn away hoards of people at the door, as
GM Place: a cast of thousands.
by then the stadium was at capacity. The crowd even sat
quiet during takes. Executive producer Bob Goodwin was
heard to say, "You couldn't pay people to be so great."
Even though this one scene cost over $85,000 in k
location-related costs, the production value was
priceless.
At one point Chris and stepped outside the stadium to
I

check on the crowds. The lineups stretched on forever,

doubling back on themselves. He reacted with surprise
and remembered seeing him during Season Two, as the
1

Tlicy lined up joi inilc^ to be extras for show was beginning to capture the attention of fans
•'The End" (5x20). around the world, sitting quietly on the veranda of
Mulder's mother's house, oblivious to the activity around
him. heard him say, softly, "I can't believe this."
I

182
 SEASON FIVE
EPILOGUE (LG)

It was at the 2400 Motel on Kingsway in Vancouver

that Chris announced to the crew that The X-Files would

be leaving Vancouver. He arrived on set after lunch, gath-

ered the crew together and read the official memo from

vice president of production Charlie Goldstein confirming

the move to L.A. The tears in Chris' eyes sparked waves

of emotion in the crew; The X-Files family was to be dis-

banded. Some crew members, anticipating the news, wore

sunglasses on the cloudy day. Some immediately flipped

open their cellular phones - no time for grief - and start-

ed inquiring about other jobs.

We all knew the show would end, but when it finally

happened, we felt a sense of loss. All those years working

together had developed intimacies. It was unavoidable David bids Vancouver adieu at the GM Place
finale.
given the amount of time spent at work. As art director

Greg Loewen said: "We spent more time with each other

than with our spouses." We had been thrown into a pool t)

with strangers and the subsequent stream of arguments,

grudges, laughter, caring, and crying solidified us as a

family. The show might be over, but we all had fond

memories.

1 was sitting in the lunchroom at the Eldorado Hotel on

Kingsway and Nanaimo when Chris called. Obviously this

was not his first call divulging the news. His voice said it

all. Chris said that I was integral to the show. He said,

"You were the show."

I'm sure he said the same to everyone.

Gillian says goodbye the Canadian way.

183
X Marks the Spot

POSTSCRIPT (TP)

A private screening of The X-Files feature film, Fight the

Future, was held in Vancouver on Sunday, June 14, 1998
in downtown theatre. Six weeks had passed since the
a
last official day of filming the series in Vancouver. Some

crew members had moved on to other productions, some

had taken time off, but most of us - and several local cast
members - showed up for the screening. Given our inti-

mate history with The X-Files we were an extremely

curious audience.
The feature was filmed in California and Texas during
the Season Four hiatus, although a small Second Unit
crew was dispatched to a glacier north of Whistler -
everyone sworn to secrecy. The script and production
information were closely-guarded secrets. Most of us in
Vancouver knew only that the working title of the film
was Blackwood, and if anyone knew more, they weren't
talking.
In the lobby before the screening - during a reunion of
sorts - Chris chatted enthusiastically about the filming of
the feature film and the challenges of creating innovative
visual effects. The viewing itself was characterized by an
eerie silence, with occasional laughter and applause.
Afterwards, Chris stood in a receiving line, soliciting
Mulder and a peanut butter sandwich ("The
Post-Modern Prometheus" (5x06)).
50 responses to what we had seen.
As people headed for the exits, Chris confessed how
nervous he had been before the screening, it was more
intense than the butterflies he felt at the press screening
in Los Angeles the week before. With the press, he said

he was relieved when the audience responded at what he

felt were the appropriate moments. Here in Vancouver,

on the other hand, he was less certain of the reactions.

"Shooting Vancouver has just
in
The silence was difficult to interpret since the audience -
been a dream, which is why am I

people who were familiar with David and Gillian's every

back here again." — Chris Carter
facial twitch and voice modulation - seemed to sift
on the set of his new series,
through each frame for meaning and subtext, wanting to
Harsh Realm, March 1 999
assess whether the feature was true to the spirit of the
series.
The reception was largely enthusiastic; a well-earned
grade from the toughest collection of critics imagineable.
As the last of us left the cinema, I quietly presented
Chris with a on behalf of the B.C. Film Commission, it
gift

was their way

showing their appreciation for his tire-
of
less support of the Vancouver industry. It was their way
of saying, "Thanks," and "Let's do it again soon."
Chris made the sentiment a reality when, in March and
April of 1999 Vancouver became home to the filming of
the pilot for his new Fox series Harsh Realm. The crew list

read like an invitation to a family reunion.

184
185
 Louisa Gradnitzer and Todd Pittson are

employed in the thriving Vancouver film industry.

They were the location managers for The X-Files

during the five years the television series

was produced in Vancouver.

 X-TOURS
A Vancouver tour guide is offering tours

to locations where The X-Files was filmed.

Tour options include;

Quick X-Tour
Cruise X-Tour
Agent X-Tour

For more information contact:

604-609-2770
1 -888-250-7211

www.x-tour.com
 "We need to keep people guessing. We only give away fragments. The viewer has to put the pieces of the puzzle together.
When it comes to The you can't be a passive viewer."
X-Files,
- series creator Chris Carter, SFX, June 1 999
The first pieces of The X-Files puzzle were established in 1993, when the program debuted on American television.
From its inauspicious beginnings as a cult TV show, to its becoming part of the collective conspiratorial unconscious,
X Marks the Spot reveals the people and the places that helped make the show part of television history - from
Chris Carter, David Duchovny, and Gillian Anderson, to UFOs, scorched corpses, and blinding lights.

The X-Files has won numerous awards and captured the imaginations of television viewers around the world.
For the first time, fans of the program can catch a glimpse of life on the set and behind the scenes,
and find out how their favourite episodes were filmed.

X Marks the Spot also includes plot synopses of the firs and anecdotes about
five years, explicit descriptions of locations, life

on set and with the stars, all ugh the eyes of^ ocation managers Todd Pittson and
as seen thr>
~" Louisa Gradnitzer, who chronich their five-year i urney through The X-Files.
;

With more than 150 photographs of sets, lo* itions, crew, ast, and would-be monsters and aliens,
X Marks the Spot is a fascinating prim] r on how to, produce groundbreaking television.

•
f * •

7 ill-" ^;<3

•• .
/*-^*»' *'-

ON LOCATION WITH THE X-PILES

ISBN 1-55152-066-4
ARSENAL PULP PRESS
$15.95 U.S./$18.95 Canada
Book Design by Lisa Eng-Lodge
Front cover photograph by Tom Braidwood
Back cover photography by Vivien Nishi
9 781551"520667 >