A digital intermediate often replaces or augments the photochemical timing process and is usually the final creative adjustment to a movie before distribution in theaters.
These two steps are typically part of the overall color management process in a motion picture at different points in time.
Color grading is done by varying the amount of red, green, and blue light used to expose the intermediate.
During this time, digitally processing an entire feature-length film was impractical because the scanners and recorders were extremely slow and the image files were too large compared to computing power available.
Digital film compositing for visual effects was immediately embraced, while optical printer use for VFX declined just as quickly.
The first Hollywood film to utilize a digital intermediate process from beginning to end was O Brother, Where Art Thou?
[4] This is due not only to the extra creative options the process affords film makers but also the need for high-quality scanning and color adjustments to produce movies for digital cinema.