Quote:Imagination and creativity are also well-represented among Oregon's community of digital media producers. So last Friday, a dozen of the state's digital storytelling creative companies gathered for "Grimmfest" -- an opportunity to pitch "Grimm"-related projects to representatives of Oregon Story Board.

A nonprofit focused on the education, support and promotion of digital media production in Oregon, Oregon Story Board was launched by the Oregon Governor's Office of Film and Television and Wieden+Kennedy's Portland Incubator Experiment, which helps support tech startups, among other activities.

Last Friday, the 12 companies each got 15 minutes to present their pitches to an Oregon Story Board panel. The event was held at the headquarters of the Portland Development Commission.

Though not at liberty to discuss the individual pitches, Midthun says sitting in on "Grimmfest" was "kind of mind-blowing. There's so much of this kind of work -- animation, visual effects, digital media -- happening in the area. We need to know more about this community, so doing things like 'Grimmfest' is an opportunity to learn more about what's going on."

The panel whittled down the pitches to a few finalists who will present their ideas to NBC representatives on Friday.

There's no guarantee any of the ideas will get a green light. "We don't expect NBC to have a blank check in their hands, ready to write one on Friday," says Porter. The most important thing, he says, is raising awareness of the level of talent represented in Oregon digital media companies.

Among the companies making pitches last week was a team from Hive-FX, a Portland company specializing in visual effects, animation and other services. Hive-FX has worked on "Grimm" visual effects since the 2011 pilot episode, says Gretchen Miller, Hive-FX executive producer.

The company's work can be seen in such "Grimm" creations as the Hexenbiest, a witch-like creature.

According to a 2011 study commissioned by the state film office and the Portland film and video office, since 2007, the Portland metropolitan area has seen a 24 percent increase in film and video production jobs.