"As much as I miss The X-Files being up here [in Vancouver], it's been really interesting for me," confides Braidwood. "A lot of good things have happened. I've been very fortunate. I've been working with a lot of interesting people, and it seems that things have been moving ahead in my career in a very positive way."

One of Braidwood's most noteworthy projects is the upcoming feature film Tilt (see A Familiar Slant, issue five), a modern-day Don Quixote that has gained as much regard for its acclaimed crew as for its unusual storyline. Over half the production team are veterans of Vancouver-era X-Files; Braidwood plays the lead role of salesman Sam Penzer. "It's an interesting stretch," he says. "The character's very different from Frohike. He's sort of this wishy-washy, indecisive man who gets caught in a situation where he has to make the decisions about what's going on, what's going to happen."

Oddly enough, this is the second role Braidwood has played in which the character was written with the actor already in mind. "I don't know why that is," he says. "But I think Patrick [Stark, producer] has always enjoyed the stuff I did as Frohike. We had worked together a bit on X-Files, and I guess they liked something I was doing there and thought I would be perfect for that part." As first A.D. on X-Files, Braidwood was once the boss of Stark, a former production assistant, and he has nothing but praise for his coworker as well as for the production -- a largely volunteer effort -- itself. "Everybody, not just the actors, but the whole crew, is putting their shoulder behind it, making it happen. It's really great."

Braidwood also recently worked as an assistant director on the now-defunct series Millennium and as a producer and director on the hard-edged Canadian drama Da Vinci's Inquest. "What's happening now with me is that I'm kind of moving towards the producing and directing thing," he says. "When this is over I suspect I'll kind of hang out and see what happens with The X-Files, and also farm out my tapes that I've made here and try to get some directing gigs on other Canadian series that are happening."

As The X-Files reaches the end of its run, Braidwood looks back on the wildly successful series with a mixture of fondness and incredulity. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life," he affirms. "It was pretty brutal, long days and long, tough shows. But those of us who were there for five years -- we were there because we enjoyed it. We enjoyed being part of it. And yeah, we enjoyed being part of a hit. I think when we all started, we never suspected that The X-Files would become what it has become. It just turned into this mega-hit. It changed all of our lives.

"I have been totally amazed by the whole thing, it is really just extraordinary. If anyone had ever suggested to me that this would have happened, I would have just laughed in their face. But there you go," Braidwood concludes. "Right time, right place, I guess."

The 11th Hour would like to thank Tom Braidwood for his participation in this interview, and Patrick Stark for his help in arranging it.

We welcome your comments on The 11th Hour and this article. Please send letters to: letters@the11thhour.com