Biography
Frank Spotnitz, an award-winning American writer and producer, is the Chief Executive of Big Light Productions Ltd., a production company based in London and Paris that he founded in 2013. With a mission to produce distinctive and ambitious TV drama series, Big Light has quickly become one of Europe's fastest-growing independent production companies. The company develops and produces a wide range of international television content, including drama, comedy, and documentaries.
Most recently, under the Big Light banner, Spotnitz co-created and executive produced the drama series Leonardo, featuring Aidan Turner, Freddie Highmore, and Matilda De Angelis. The series was produced for RAI, France Télévisions, RTVE, and Sony, with Big Light Productions co-producing alongside Lux Vide.
Previously, Spotnitz led Big Light to produce several high-profile drama projects, such as Amazon's Emmy-winning The Man in the High Castle, adapted from Philip K. Dick’s novel. Spotnitz created, executive produced, and wrote multiple episodes of this acclaimed series, which premiered in 2015 across the UK, US, Germany, and Austria, becoming Amazon’s most-watched drama series. Other notable productions include Medici: Masters of Florence, starring Richard Madden and Dustin Hoffman, and two seasons of Medici: The Magnificent, with Daniel Sharman and Sean Bean, both for RAI Italy, SFR Play France, and Netflix; Ransom for CBS (US), Corus's Global (Canada), TF1 (France), and RTL (Germany); and the comedy-drama The Indian Detective, starring Russell Peters, for Bell Media/CTV and Netflix.
Spotnitz’s additional credits encompass Crossing Lines season 3 (2015) with Tandem/Studio Canal; Transporter: The Series season 2 (2014) for TNT (US), M6 (Germany), and HBO Canada; Hunted (2012); Strike Back (2011); Samurai Girl (2008); Night Stalker (2005); Michael Mann’s Robbery Homicide Division (2002); The Lone Gunmen (2001); Harsh Realm (2000); and Millennium (1997-1999). In 2006, he co-wrote and created the pilot A.M.P.E.D. for Spike TV with Vince Gilligan. Spotnitz directed two episodes and wrote or co-wrote over 40 episodes of The X-Files television series. He was also a producer and co-writer for both The X-Files feature films: Fight the Future (1998) and I Want to Believe (2008). His work on The X-Files earned him three Golden Globes for Best Dramatic Series and a Peabody Award, along with an Emmy nomination for writing and three nominations for Outstanding Drama Series.
In 2013, Spotnitz co-founded and began teaching at Serial Eyes, a postgraduate training program in Berlin designed to prepare the next generation of European TV writer-producers. Centered around the writers' room experience, the program enables twelve participants annually to learn from industry professionals and develop a European approach to show-running. Each year, one participant is selected for a three-month placement with Big Light Productions.
Born in Japan, Spotnitz holds a B.A. in English literature from UCLA and an M.F.A. in screenwriting from the American Film Institute. He started his career as a journalist, writing for the Associated Press, United Press International, Entertainment Weekly, and other outlets.
