How to Build Free Professional Film Emulations in DaVinci Resolve with Color Management

Cullen Kelly

Understanding the Film Look and Digital Challenges [00:00:24]

• Defining the Film Look: The "film look" fundamentally requires two components: a film negative and a film print. Without these, a film image cannot be obtained, making the film look inherently "display-referred" – it's ready and visible on a screen.
• The Digital Integration Problem [00:01:14]: In digital color grading, a conflict arises when trying to incorporate a display-referred film print (which prepares the image for screen) with a digital color management framework's output transform (which also prepares the image for screen). These two components performing similar tasks can "stack" and produce undesirable results.
• Emulation vs. Imitation [00:03:02]:
  • Emulation: Uses actual measured data from real film behavior as the basis for the digital look, aiming for accuracy. This is the focus of the video.
  • Imitation: Mimics desired characteristics (e.g., shadow feel, highlight rolloff, skin tone rendering) by visual judgment, often using native tools or look development plugins, without strict adherence to measured film data.

Building the Film Emulation Pipeline in DaVinci Resolve [00:04:56]

The video outlines a four-step node-based workflow within DaVinci Resolve to create a film emulation that integrates well with a color-managed environment.

1. Initial Color Management Setup [00:04:00]

• The workflow starts with standard color management:
  • Input Transform: From camera color space (e.g., ARRI Log C3) to a working color space (e.g., DaVinci Wide Gamut Intermediate) at the group pre-clip level.
  • Output Transform: Set at the timeline level to make the image correct for the display (e.g., Rec. 709 Gamma 2.4). This output transform is temporarily disabled to begin building the emulation.

    

2. Step 1: To ACES AP0 Linear [00:05:57]

• The first node in the film emulation stack converts the image from DaVinci Wide Gamut Intermediate to ACES AP0 Linear.
• This conversion is done using a Color Space Transform (CST) node.
• The purpose is to enter a linear domain that serves as the input space for the next step, modeling the film negative.

  

3. Step 2: Negative Space (ADX10) [00:06:53]

• A second ACES Transform node is used to model the film negative.
• The input to this node is ACES AP0 Linear (from the previous step), and the output is set to ADX10.
• ADX10 is a generalized color space developed by the creators of ACES to characterize the color space of a film negative.

  

4. Step 3: Film Print (Kodak 2383 D60 LUT) [00:08:04]

• The next step involves applying a film print Look Up Table (LUT) to the negative-state image.
• DaVinci Resolve includes several free film emulation LUTs under its "Film Looks" folder.
• The video uses the Rec 709 Kodak 2383 D60 LUT. Other options include D55 (warmer) and D65 (cooler).
• Applying this LUT to the negative state image creates a desirable film rendering, achieving the fundamental "film look."

  

5. Step 4: Pre-Inversion (Display to Scene Color Space) [00:09:13]

• This is the critical step to resolve the conflict between the film print (display-referred) and the digital color management's output transform (scene-referred).
• A Color Space Transform (CST) node is added to "pre-invert" the image.
• The input is set to a display color space (Rec 709 Gamma 2.4), and the output is set back to a scene-referred working space (DaVinci Wide Gamut Intermediate).
• This prepares the image to correctly interact with the final output transform, ensuring they don't stack incorrectly.

  

• The complete four-node film emulation pipeline:

  

Analyzing and Refining the Pipeline [00:10:37]

• Using a Grayscale Ramp for Analysis [00:11:00]: A grayscale ramp DCTL is introduced before the film emulation pipeline to visually analyze how each node affects the image's tonal response on the waveform scope, helping to identify and correct any unwanted clipping or harsh curve changes.
• Refining ACES Transform with Luminance Mapping [00:12:51]: The ACES Transform node, which initially appears to clip data due to mapping into a linear domain with a vast range, is adjusted with luminance mapping (Custom Max Output: 10,000, Custom Max Output: ~2200 nits) to gently roll off highlights, preventing hard clipping.

  

• Ensuring Smooth Curves Post-Print [00:14:28]: The curves after the print LUT generally appear smooth, indicating proper handling of the traditional film reproduction.
• Optimizing Pre-Inversion for Dynamic Range [00:15:19]: The display-to-scene CST requires careful luminance mapping to stretch the dynamic range back out smoothly. A Custom Max Input of 100 nits and a Custom Max Output of 600-650 nits are typically used to restore dynamic range without introducing "chunky" or jagged curves.

  

• Verifying Minimal Visual Change [00:17:17]: After activating the final output transform, the goal is to see minimal visual change when toggling the entire film emulation stack on and off, as the primary aim is pipeline compatibility, not a visual alteration of the already achieved film look.

  

Exporting the Custom Film Emulation LUT [00:18:17]

• To create a reusable LUT:
  • Preparation: Turn off the input transform (camera to working space) and the final output transform (working space to display). Also, turn off the grayscale ramp. Only the four film emulation nodes should be active.
  • Generation: Right-click on the node graph and select "Generate LUT" -> "65-point cube."
  • Naming: Save the LUT with a descriptive name (e.g., "2383 DaVinci wide gamut") and remove any extraneous suffixes DaVinci Resolve might add.
  • Verification [00:21:07]: Apply the newly generated LUT to a clean node, disable the original four emulation nodes, and compare the result against a reference still of the original 4-node setup. There should be no perceivable difference.

    

Pros and Cons of This Workflow [00:22:16]

• Pros:
  • Achieves a visually faithful film emulation within a color-managed framework.
  • Allows targeting other display color spaces (e.g., HDR) effectively.
• Cons:
  • The image quality will, at best, be similar to the pre-emulation image; it won't "get better," and slight visual disturbances can occur due to the transformations.
  • This specific pre-inversion approach only works for one Digital Rendering Transform (DRT) or output transform at a time. Swapping DRTs requires recalibrating or creating a new LUT, as shown when swapping the CST with a different DRT leads to an asymmetrical round-trip and significant image change.

    

Alternative Workflow for Film Emulation [00:27:27]

• Instead of complex pre-inversion, a simpler and often "gentler" alternative exists:
  • Disable the "pre-inversion" CST node and the digital output transform.
  • Let the film print LUT directly serve as the DRT, applying its inherent display-referred characteristics directly to the image.
  • Perform all grading at the clip level.
• This approach aligns with how real film works (outputs directly to a display) and minimizes image manipulation. It's still color management, just using the film print as the display transform.

The Core Difficulty in Digital Film Emulation [00:28:33]

• The main reason digital film emulation is often a "moving target" is that users desire the film aesthetic and system but want it to conform to their existing digital workflows, rather than adapting to the film system's inherent display-referred terms.
• Meeting the film system "on its own terms" often means letting the film print itself handle the output transform.