For those who don’t know the tool: DaVinci Resolve is a page-based post suite for edit, grading, VFX, and audio, with collaboration via Blackmagic Cloud. The Studio edition adds higher end finishing and advanced features on macOS, Windows, and Linux.

What beta 2 actually adds

Blackmagic Design turns DaVinci Resolve 21 into a photo app

The Studio installer now includes additional software for remote monitoring, alongside utilities for hardware control panels. It also installs Blackmagic RAW Player and Blackmagic Proxy Generator into the applications folder. On the Photo page, Studio adds direct image capture via tethered cameras from Sony or Canon. Studio also enables using Resolve’s native AI toolset in this workflow, including AI IntelliSearch.

Also: The new Handbook with the new features and their explanations is online: Resolve_21_New_Features_Guide.pdf

Studio leans hard into AI

Studio adds AI IntelliSearch for searching people or objects, plus AI SlateFinder and AI SlateID for detecting slates and populating clip metadata. It also adds AI Speech Generator for turning written text into spoken voice, and AI CineFocus for refocus with bokeh and lens effects.

Studio also imporves AI Face Age Transformer, AI Face Reshaper, and AI Blemish Removal, plus AI UltraSharpen and AI Motion Deblur. Studio lists improved AI UltraNR quality for UHD and higher timelines, and this is where you should test early, because AI fixes can be brilliant right up to the frame where they are not.

Background work and heavier workflows

Studio adds background renders, quick exports and porxy generation, plus background analysis for transcription and audio classification. It also adds support for remote monitoring of Fusion previews, tying the workflow closer to real review patterns on set and in facilities.

For immersive and VR, Studio lists initial VR180 and VR360 standard immersive workflow support, viewing source clips as immersive or viewport, immersive transform controls, and deliver presets for Meta Quest and YouTube. Apple Immersive workflows add foveated rendering support.

Practical warnings, still the same rule

Resolve 21 aims to keep project libraries compatible with Resolve 20.3.2, but projects created or opened in 21 no longer open in 20.3.2. A full project library backup plus individual project backups stays the smart move before opening real jobs.

Pricing stays simple in the available info: the public beta is a free download, and DaVinci Resolve Studio is listed at $295. If you touch the Color page changes, keep your usual discipline: validate scopes, transforms, and deliverables in your own colro pipeline before you call anything production-ready.

https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/media/release/20260414-01

The post Blackmagic Design updates Resolve 21 beta 2 first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

With ARRI Film Lab, Munich’s camera giant is bottling more than a century of photochemical experience into a single OpenFX plugin. Available now via RE:Vision Effects, it promises to give digital images the texture and tonality of analog film, complete with adjustable grain, halation, and even gate weave.

Built from the Film Lab Up

Drawing from decades of internal R&D (ARRILASER, ARRISCAN, and REVEAL Color Science among them) ARRI Film Lab offers a full analog emulation layer for RGB images from any camera that enters the ARRI pipeline. Designed for colourists and finishing artists, it runs in real time within DaVinci Resolve, Baselight, Nuke, and other OpenFX-compatible systems. The plugin supports 4K real-time processing and works across LogC3 (AWG3) and LogC4 (AWG4) workflows. Whether the footage was recorded in ARRICORE, ARRIRAW, ProRes, or a third-party codec, Film Lab aims to deliver a consistent analog response. Support for ACES 2.0 is already planned.

The Science of Imperfection

ARRI Film Lab models the key physical characteristics of motion picture film. Grain can be dialled to match the response of 50D, 200T, or 500T negative stocks. The colour engine mimics print and reversal processes, including bleach bypass. A halation control simulates the subtle red-orange glow that occurs when light scatters through film layers, while a gate weave setting introduces the fractional image instability that gives celluloid its telltale flutter. Each control is continuously adjustable, and according to ARRI, any combination of settings will produce a pleasing analog feel. The plugin’s logic ensures that user-made extremes still behave within believable photochemical limits.

On-Set Preview in the Works

A firmware update planned for Q1 2026 will allow on-set simulation of Film Lab looks on ALEXA 35 and ALEXA 35 Xtreme cameras. Using a combination of ARRI Textures and 3D LUTs, the system renders a live preview of the desired film look in the camera’s viewfinder or monitor feed. Nothing is baked in, and no external hardware is required. Once in post, the Film Lab plugin applies higher-fidelity grain and texture processing.

Familiar Looks, Now in Plugin Form

Bundled with Film Lab is a plugin edition of the ARRI Look Library, providing access to ARRI’s established LUT collection directly inside the postproduction environment. This allows colourists to mix predefined looks with Film Lab’s analog simulations for nuanced results across scenes or mixed-camera projects.

Licensing and Availability

ARRI Film Lab is distributed through both ARRI and RE:Vision Effects. A one-week free trial is offered. Individual users can purchase monthly, annual, or perpetual licenses, while companies can opt for per-user pricing. Educational institutions receive discounted rates.

Summary

• Plugin format: OpenFX
• Processing: Real-time 4K RGB
• Supported tools: Resolve, Baselight, Nuke, and others
• Camera compatibility: Any RGB source in ARRI workflow
• Workflows: LogC3 (AWG3), LogC4 (AWG4), ARRICORE, ARRIRAW, ProRes, third-party codecs
• Controls: Grain (50D, 200T, 500T), colour process (print, reversal, bleach bypass), halation, gate weave
• Additional content: Integrated ARRI Look Library plugin
• Future update: On-set preview for ALEXA 35 and 35 Xtreme in Q1 2026

Testing Recommended

As always, new emulation tools should be tested in controlled environments before being adopted in production workflows.

The post Analog Soul, Digital Body: ARRI Film Lab Arrives first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.