DaVinci Resolve MCP (free edition)

davinci-resolve-mcp

Let Claude Code drive the free edition of DaVinci Resolve 21.1.

Resolve 21.1 free removed Python scripts from the Workspace > Scripts menu and blocks external scripting. Lua menu scripts still run. This project uses that gap. A Lua bridge runs inside Resolve and a tiny Python MCP server runs outside. The server sends Lua to the bridge, the bridge runs it against the live resolve object and sends the answer back. A call takes about 80 to 95 ms as measured. There are 33 tools, plus run_lua for anything the named tools do not cover.

Requirements

• macOS
• DaVinci Resolve 21.1.2, free or Studio
• Claude Code
• Python 3.9 or newer at /usr/bin/python3
• No pip installs. The server uses the standard library only.

Install

git clone https://github.com/kingjamesch/davinci-resolve-mcp.git
cd davinci-resolve-mcp
./install.sh

The installer does four things:

1. Copies the two Lua scripts into ~/Library/Application Support/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci Resolve/Fusion/Scripts/Utility/. It stamps the state directory path into the bridge.
2. Creates the state directory ~/Library/Application Support/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci Resolve/ClaudeMCP with mode 0700.
3. Registers the server with Claude Code at user scope as davinci.
4. Prints the next steps.

Next steps, as the installer prints them:

NEXT STEPS
1) Quit and reopen DaVinci Resolve once (it scans the Scripts menu only at startup).
2) In Resolve: Workspace > Scripts > Claude_MCP_Bridge (do this once per Resolve session; Claude_MCP_Bridge_Stop stops it).
3) In Claude Code run /mcp and check that 'davinci' is connected, then ask for resolve_status.

The Resolve restart is needed once, after the first install. Resolve only reads the Scripts folder at startup.

Other flags:

Install as a Claude Code plugin

If you only use Claude Code, skip the clone. Inside Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add kingjamesch/davinci-resolve-mcp
/plugin install davinci-resolve@davinci-resolve-mcp
/davinci-resolve:setup

The plugin registers the davinci server itself; /davinci-resolve:setup copies the two Lua scripts into Resolve's Scripts folder. Then restart Resolve once and click Workspace > Scripts > Claude_MCP_Bridge. The plugin also ships a resolve skill with the conventions Claude needs (absolute frames, marker rules, Lua idioms, Studio-only traps).

Use either the plugin or ./install.sh, not both, or Claude Code sees two davinci servers (claude mcp remove davinci -s user removes the clone-based one).

The server is also listed on the MCP Registry as io.github.kingjamesch/davinci-resolve-mcp for discovery. The listing is metadata only: install from the plugin or the clone as above, since the bridge must be placed inside Resolve by hand.

Daily use

1. Open Resolve with a project.
2. Click Workspace > Scripts > Claude_MCP_Bridge. Do this once per Resolve session.
3. In Claude Code, ask for resolve_status first. It tells you whether the bridge is alive.
4. To stop the bridge, click Workspace > Scripts > Claude_MCP_Bridge_Stop.

Example prompts:

• "Call resolve_status, then list my timelines."
• "Add a red marker named 'fix audio' at 00:00:10:00 on the current timeline."
• "Import everything in /Users/me/Footage/day1 and make a timeline called Day 1 from it."
• "Queue an mp4 render of the current timeline into /Users/me/Exports, start it and tell me when it finishes."
• "Use run_lua to list the clip colors on video track 1."

Tools

The full reference, with every argument, is in docs/TOOLS.md. It is generated from the code.

• Status and project: resolve_status, list_projects, get_project_info, get_project_setting, open_project, save_project, set_project_setting, open_page
• Timelines: list_timelines, get_timeline_info, get_timeline_items, get_timeline_markers, set_current_timeline, set_timecode, create_timeline, add_marker, delete_markers, insert_timeline_element, delete_timeline_items, export_timeline
• Media pool: list_media_pool, get_clip_properties, create_media_pool_folder, import_media, append_clips_to_timeline
• Render: get_render_status, list_render_options, add_render_job, start_render, stop_render, delete_render_job
• Escape hatch: run_lua runs any Lua 5.1 chunk inside Resolve. scripting_api_docs searches Blackmagic's shipped API reference so Claude can write that Lua correctly.

Conventions: paths are absolute, frames are integers in the timeline's own numbering, timecodes are HH:MM:SS:FF, and track and item indexes start at 1.

How it works

• Claude Code starts server.py over stdio. The server speaks MCP and holds no network socket.
• To send a request, the server creates folders under the state directory. The request is hex-encoded into the folder names.
• The Lua bridge lists those folders every 30 ms, decodes the request and runs it with the resolve object bound.
• The bridge returns the answer with fu:SetData, which Resolve writes to Fusion.prefs. The server polls that file.
• The last response stays in Fusion.prefs and is cleared about 10 seconds after it was written; the bridge also clears it when it stops.
• Several Claude Code sessions can share one Resolve: every server takes a lock in the state directory, so requests run one at a time.

The wire format is in docs/PROTOCOL.md. The design record is in docs/MCP-RECORD.md.

Troubleshooting

• Tools say the bridge is not running. Open Resolve with a project and click Workspace > Scripts > Claude_MCP_Bridge, then retry.
• Workspace > Scripts shows no Claude_MCP_Bridge. Resolve was not restarted after the install. Quit and reopen it. Run ./install.sh --check to confirm the files are in place.
• A tool times out. Resolve is probably showing a dialog, such as the Studio upsell or a frame-rate question after an import. Dismiss it in Resolve. Long operations also block the bridge until they finish.
• A Studio-only feature fails. Do not use Studio-only features on the free edition. They fail or open an upgrade dialog that blocks the bridge.
• The old davinci-resolve-lite-mcp Python scripts do nothing. They cannot work on 21.1 or later, because Python scripts no longer appear in the Scripts menu and external scripting is blocked.

Not included yet

Color-page node tools, gallery and stills, Fairlight, compound and Fusion clips, keyboard and preset import or export, project archive and restore, automatic bridge start when Resolve launches, a Claude Desktop .mcpb package, and Windows. run_lua covers most of these in the meantime. Set DAVINCI_MCP_DISABLE_RUN_LUA=1 in the server environment to remove run_lua from the tool list.

Security posture

• Local only. The server opens no network port and sends no telemetry.
• There are no credentials. The identity is your macOS user.
• Anyone who can write to the state directory can run Lua inside Resolve as you. The directory is created with mode 0700.
• Destructive tools need confirm: true. run_lua is open-ended, so Claude is told to ask you before running code that deletes or overwrites.
• Responses are size-capped. Over-cap results come back marked truncated.
• Fusion.prefs is readable by your user and holds the last response until it is cleared.
• To shut it down, run the Stop script and delete the state directory.
• The server logs only the tool name, status and duration to stderr. It never logs arguments or results.

Development

Run the tests:

/usr/bin/python3 -m unittest discover -s tests

Regenerate the tool reference after changing any tool:

/usr/bin/python3 scripts/gen_tools_doc.py

A test fails if docs/TOOLS.md is stale or if a tool is renamed.

Layout:

server.py                  stdio entry point
install.py, install.sh     installer, uninstaller (uninstall.sh)
bridge/                    Lua scripts that run inside Resolve
davinci_mcp/               server, transport, prefs parser, Lua encoder, docs index
davinci_mcp/tools/         one module per tool group
docs/                      MCP-RECORD.md, PROTOCOL.md, TOOLS.md (generated)
scripts/gen_tools_doc.py   generates docs/TOOLS.md
tests/                     unit tests and the offline bridge round trip

Credits

• The JSON encoder and several measured host facts are adapted from saadk408/davinci-resolve-lua-mcp, MIT.
• The idea of using Lua over the preferences file as a channel comes from AutoSubs.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.