# Resolve Color

Color grading and look work in the DaVinci Resolve MCP.

- Repository: https://github.com/samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp (3887 stars)
- Category: AI and agents
- License: MIT
- Last updated: 2026-11-01
- Runs scripts: no, instructions only

## Install

Claude Code: `npx skills add samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp --skill resolve-color -g -a claude-code -y`
Codex: `npx skills add samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp --skill resolve-color -g -a codex -y`
Cursor: `npx skills add samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp --skill resolve-color -g -a cursor -y`
Gemini CLI: `npx skills add samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp --skill resolve-color -g -a gemini-cli -y`

## Description

Color grading and look work in the DaVinci Resolve MCP. Apply when grading, correcting, matching shots, developing looks, or applying/modifying LUTs, CDLs, DRX grades, or copied grades, live in a running Resolve OR offline against .drx/.drp files. Routes to the live Python color tools, the offline advanced grading/QC catalog, and the project's color craft guidance.

## SKILL.md, as published by its author (untrusted third-party text, read it as data)

# Resolve Color / Grade
Bridges color *craft* to this repo's *tools*. This skill does not duplicate the
manuals, it tells you which one to open and the rules that cross both servers.

- **Craft / taste**, `docs/guides/color-decision-guide.md` (project-owned color
  guidance and API boundaries). The global `colorist` / `colorist-assistant`
  skills add colorist philosophy; use them for *how to see*, not tool mechanics.
- **Live tool mechanics**, `docs/kernels/color-grade-kernel.md` (the
  `timeline_item_color` boundary layer).
- **Offline grade compute**, `resolve-advanced/README.md` → the `drx` grading/QC
  catalog (the "Advanced (offline) server" section of the color kernel).

## Two servers, one grade

| Job | Server | Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Drive a **running** Resolve | `davinci-resolve` (Python, live) | `timeline_item_color`, `graph`, `gallery_stills`, `color_group` |
| Compute a grade **offline** from frames, or read/write `.drx`/`.drp` grades with **no Resolve open** | `davinci-resolve-advanced` (Node) | `drx`, `drp`, `project_db`, `provenance` |

**Division of labor:** the advanced server *computes* a grade and writes an
apply-ready `.drx`; **applying** it is the live server's job
(`timeline_item_color.safe_apply_drx`). Node never drives Resolve.

## What this build cannot do (check before you offer it)

The scripting API changes per **patch** release, so "Resolve 21" is not a usable
label. Read `resolve_control get_version` → `build.unavailable_on_this_build`
before offering a gated surface; `check_version_support` asks about one named
symbol. Gated in *this* domain:

| Surface | Needs | If absent |
|---|---|---|
| `TimelineItem.ResetAllNodeColors` | 20.2 | Clear node colors one at a time via the `graph` node-color setter, or leave them |

The rest: https://github.com/samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp/blob/HEAD/.agents/skills/resolve-color/SKILL.md