After establishing himself as a film critic in Wikén, the weekend supplement of the newspaper El Mercurio, and at the defunct TV station Canal 2 Rock & Pop [es], he wrote his first telenovela, Adrenalina (1996).

The telenovela generated controversy[clarification needed] for its storyline based on fleeting teen romances at a high school in the "barrio alto" (upper district) of Santiago.

[citation needed] His initiation as a screenwriter came later, with Fuera de control [es] (1999), which did not generate high television ratings but was lauded by critics; it became a cult classic, and would be reaired on two occasions.

After Piel canela [es] (2001), a series which obtained weak ratings and critical reviews and caused a temporary pause of telenovela production on Canal 13, he reestablished himself with the successful Machos (2003), co-written with Coca Gómez and Sebastián Arrau.

Illanes directed Baby Shower [es] (2011), a horror film starring actresses such as Ingrid Isensee, Claudia Burr, Francisca Merina, Sofía García, and Patricia López from several of his previous series.