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The problem with badly placed LUTs
A LUT applied without pipeline logic produces unpredictable results depending on the camera, the source space or the project color management settings.
Available
DaVinci Resolve Studio · DCTL · DWG Workflow
Available now
Look Engine
Look development DCTL for DaVinci Resolve Studio. Designed for a scene-referred workflow in DaVinci Wide Gamut / Intermediate, with creative controls built for coherent, reproducible and professional finishing.
DaVinci Resolve Studio
macOS / Windows
DCTL
DWG / Intermediate
€59
Instant download via Gumroad. DCTL file compatible with DaVinci Resolve Studio. Not a LUT pack. No subscription. No complex system installation.
Concept
This is not a LUT. It is an architecture.
LUT packs are shortcuts. Look Engine is a structure. It operates in scene-referred space, fits into a coherent DWG pipeline and produces a reproducible result from one project to another.
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Technical and creative mixed together
When balance, transform and look are confused inside the same node, the grade becomes unreadable and reproduction becomes impossible.
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Look Engine: every parameter in its place
Look Engine is inserted after the primary balance and before the output transform. It operates in DWG / Intermediate and exposes direct, predictable and calibrated finishing controls.
For whom
Who Look Engine is for
Look Engine is for colorists, advanced DaVinci Resolve users and trainers who want a coherent creative finishing tool inside a scene-referred pipeline.
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Colorists
To structure a look inside a DaVinci Wide Gamut pipeline without relying on an opaque LUT.
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Advanced Resolve users
To work with a clean, readable and calibrated DCTL built for look development in DaVinci Resolve Studio.
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Trainers and educational workflows
To clearly show the difference between balance, transform, look and display transform.
Contents
What you receive
The product is delivered as a DCTL file ready to be integrated into DaVinci Resolve Studio.
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DCTL file
The core of the product, ready to be copied into the DaVinci Resolve LUT / DCTL folder.
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Pipeline logic
A clear place in the node tree: after the balance, before the display transform.
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Creative controls
Look, exposure, contrast, pivot, roll-off, depth, warm and white point according to the intended architecture.
Visuals
The render in real-world situations
Night automotive, sailing at sea, skin, corporate, nature, neon: Look Engine works on very different media because it operates inside a shared space. The result will not be identical on every source, because the gap between a GoPro, a DJI Air 2S, a Canon R5 or a Sony FX6 remains real. However, working in a shared space makes it possible to achieve a more coherent, more controllable and more reproducible rendering logic.
Pipeline
Where Look Engine fits in your workflow
Look Engine is designed for a DaVinci Wide Gamut scene-referred pipeline. It has a precise place: after the camera transform and the primary balance, before the display transform.
// Node order : DaVinci Wide Gamut pipeline
Node 01 → Camera Transform (CST-In)
Canon Log 3 / S-Log3 / D-Log / Apple Log → DWG Intermediate
Canon Log 3 / S-Log3 / D-Log / Apple Log → DWG Intermediate
Node 02 → Primary Balance
Exposure · Balance · Primaries · Wheels
Exposure · Balance · Primaries · Wheels
Node 03 → ▶ DCVisuals Look Engine
Look · Exposure · Contrast · Highlight RollOff · Shadow Depth · Warm · White W
Look · Exposure · Contrast · Highlight RollOff · Shadow Depth · Warm · White W
Node 04 → Display Transform (CST-Out)
DWG Intermediate → Rec.709 Gamma 2.4
DWG Intermediate → Rec.709 Gamma 2.4
// Important
Look Engine operates in scene-referred space. Output values can go above 1.0 depending on the settings: this is expected.
Recommendation: after each look, check Highlight RollOff and White Point W.
Controls
The exposed parameters
Every parameter has a precise role in the architecture. No overload, no ambiguity.
Look
Look preset selection. Each preset is calibrated for a specific rendering consistent with the DWG pipeline.
Exposure
Exposure adjustment. Operates in scene-referred space before the look: different from gain.
Contrast & Pivot
Contrast scaling with configurable pivot. Affects the global tonal distribution with smoothness.
Highlight RollOff
Smooth highlight compression. Lets you recover overexposed areas without flattening them artificially.
Shadow Depth
Tonal shaping of the shadows. Controls black depth.
Warm
Creative warm/cool temperature adjustment.
White W
Reference white adjustment parameter. Affects how the look is positioned relative to the default white point calibrated at 0.9.
Installation
Set up in 4 steps
The .dctl file is copied into the DaVinci Resolve LUT folder. No system installation, no network access required.
macOS
Copy the
.dctl file into the folder:
/Library/Application Support/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci Resolve/LUT/DCVisuals/
Windows
Copy the
.dctl file into the folder:
C:\ProgramData\Blackmagic Design\DaVinci Resolve\Support\LUT\DCVisuals\
After copying the file
1. Open DaVinci Resolve Studio → Color Page → LUT Browser → right click → Refresh
2. Look Engine appears inside the DCVisuals folder in the LUT Browser
3. Add Resolve FX DCTL in the Color page and drag and drop the effect onto an empty node
4. Select DCVisuals Look Engine from the DCTL drop-down list
5. Your turn
2. Look Engine appears inside the DCVisuals folder in the LUT Browser
3. Add Resolve FX DCTL in the Color page and drag and drop the effect onto an empty node
4. Select DCVisuals Look Engine from the DCTL drop-down list
5. Your turn
Frequently asked questions
FAQ
Is Look Engine a LUT or a LUT pack?
No. It is a DCTL for DaVinci Resolve Studio. It exposes interactive parameters and operates in scene-referred space. No LUT is included in the file.
Do I need DaVinci Resolve Studio?
Yes. DCTLs require DaVinci Resolve Studio. The free version of Resolve does not allow the use of DCTL Effects.
What exactly will I download?
You download a digital product distributed via Gumroad, containing the Look Engine DCTL file ready to be installed in DaVinci Resolve Studio.
Does it work with every camera?
Look Engine operates after the camera transform, in DaVinci Wide Gamut / Intermediate space. If your pipeline correctly brings the clips into that space, it works regardless of the source camera.
Can it replace a Display Transform?
No. Look Engine is a scene-referred creative finishing tool. It must be followed by a coherent Display Transform to produce a final image.
Is it compatible with Nodal Tree Engine?
Yes. Nodal Tree Engine is a DRX PowerGrade designed to integrate Look Engine into a complete workflow architecture. Both tools work together.
Buy Look Engine
Look Engine is available for instant download on Gumroad. If you are looking for a clean look development tool for DaVinci Resolve Studio, designed for a scene-referred DaVinci Wide Gamut / Intermediate pipeline, this is where it starts.