Optimus’ Duff is chair of national AICE Show in Chicago this spring

Chicago’s vibrant editing scene gets a boost when the national AICE Show takes place here this spring. The third annual show will be an event that show chairman Tom Duff hopes “will knock their socks off.”

And well it could. For openers, the May 13 show, called “Editors Un-Veiled,” will take place at a unique venue ? the Cadillac Room in Soldier Field. “The room is similar to clubs at sporting venues like Sox Park,” said Red Car’s Bob Carr, local AICE board member. “It has large rear screen projection and it’s set up to handle large parties.”

Some 500 guests from post, production and advertising are expected to attend to see the best editing in television advertising across 11 categories, said Optimus’ Duff, who is the local AICE chapter president.

Winners will be named for best editing of comedy, dialog, graphics, montage, local spot, music/sound, national campaign, public service, spec spot, storytelling and visual effects.

Finalists will be chosen by a vote of 650-plus editors from 125 AICE-member companies in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York and San Francisco.

A Blue Ribbon panel of editors, directors, agency creatives and producers will name the 11 winners.

This will be the national association’s third competition. The first show was held in fall of 2001 in Los Angeles, the second the following fall in New York. “The directors decided to hold the show in spring, instead of fall when so many award shows are held,” noted Duff, “and this pushed the third annual show over to 2004.”

The show board over which Duff presides consists of the presidents of the other chapters plus former Chicago president Carr.

Duff is at 312/321-0800; see www.aice.org.