Cutters adds new editor/partner

Grant Gustafson, award-winning spot editor known for his high-profile work on Anheuser Busch brands, has joined Cutters, from a dozen years at The Whitehouse and its predecessor company, The Lookinglass.

Gustafson joined in mid-August as Cutters ninth Chicago editor and the fifth partner of the 25-year old post house. The move, he says, “felt like a good career move to branch out and expand my horizons.”

“It’s exciting to have Grant join us,” says Cutters founder/president Tim McGuire. “His creative perspective and wealth of experience will benefit the future of Cutters.”

Gustafson says he can’t reveal details of his first Cutters job except to say he’ll start cutting two national spots next week for an East Coast agency.

Gustafson’s editing style highlights comedy and dialog. His recent spots include Capital One, the Ad Council and Budweiser Europe’s “Swap” shot for airing during the World Cup, all for DDB.

Some of Gustafson’s best known Anheuser Busch spots won a Cannes Silver Lion, an Emmy nomination and numerous top rankings by the USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter. His State Farm spot was honored as one of AICP’s Best of Chicago spots last year.

A native of Beloit, Wisc. Gustafson interned at The Lookinglass between his junior and senior year at Lawrence University in Appleton, where he graduated in 1999 with a degree in biology.

“I was 21 years old and feeling out what the possibilities were in the postproduction field,” which he admits was “a big turn” from his college major.

After graduation, The Lookinglass hired Gustafson as a full-time runner; six months later he was assisting editor Mike Coletta (now at Red Car). The Lookinglass sent him to New York as an assistant to one of its top editors and he returned to Chicago in 2003 as an editor on commercials for leading national advertisers.

Cutters is located at 515 N. State; phone, 312/644-2500. See