Big Idea

The argument in one line.

DaVinci Resolve Studio can be scripted, and an AI can write those scripts from a plain-English prompt, so any repetitive editing task can become a one-click or one-shortcut tool.

Who This Is For

Read if. Skip if.

READ IF YOU ARE…

A video editor on DaVinci Resolve Studio who keeps repeating the same batch change across a timeline and wants to automate it without learning to code.
An editor who has heard Resolve can be scripted but has never known where scripts live, how to run them, or how to fix one that does nothing.
A YouTube editor looking for ready-made helpers like a render notification, a chapter formatter, or a clipboard image paster.

SKIP IF…

You use the free version of Resolve, because the video says scripting is increasingly limited there.
You edit in Premiere Pro, Final Cut, or another editor, since everything here is specific to Resolve.

TL;DR

The full version, fast.

Resolve exposes a scripting layer you can reach through the Workspace console or through script files dropped into its scripts folder. You do not need to code, because an AI like ChatGPT can write a Lua script from a plain prompt. Download the file, put it in the Utility scripts folder on Mac or Windows, and run it from Workspace then Scripts. If nothing happens, copy the console error back to the AI for a fix. Assign a keyboard shortcut for speed. Scripts are limited in the free version, so this suits Studio users.

Free for members

Chat with this breakdown — free.

Sign in and you get 23 free chat messages on us — ask for the hook, quote a framework, find the exact transcript moment, generate a markdown action plan. Bring your own key when you want unlimited.

Create a free account →

Chapters

Where the time goes.

00:00 – 00:53

01 · Cold open and promise

Two example scripts shown, and the plan to teach custom scripts plus share free ones.

00:53 – 03:30

02 · What Resolve scripting is

The console talks directly to Resolve, then the same commands are saved as a .lua script and run from Workspace.

03:30 – 04:30

03 · Why you do not need to code

AI can write the scripts for you, shown with a prompt to ChatGPT.

04:30 – 06:05

04 · Install and run the script

Finding the Utility scripts folder on Mac and Windows, then running the title search script.

06:05 – 07:30

05 · Debugging and AI access

Use the console for errors, and connect AI directly to Resolve with the 21.1 AI assistance feature.

07:30 – 08:56

06 · Keyboard shortcuts and caveats

Assign shortcuts to scripts, trigger from Stream Deck, and note the free version limits.

08:56 – 12:45

07 · The six free scripts

Preset Saver, Image Saver, render notification, YouTube chapters, copy preset attributes, paste clipboard image.

12:45 – 13:09

08 · Next video

Pointer to a video on custom keyboard shortcuts.

Atomic Insights

Lines worth screenshotting.

You do not need to learn to code to script DaVinci Resolve, because an AI can write the script from a plain-English description of what you want.
The Resolve console lets you tell the program to do an exact thing directly, instead of clicking through its interface.
A script is just the same commands from the console saved in a plain text file with a .lua extension and dropped in the scripts folder.
Scripts can have their own control panels and buttons, so a script can feel like a full plugin.
When a script does nothing, open the console, run it again, and paste any red error text back into the AI to get a corrected file.
Any script can be given its own keyboard shortcut in Keyboard Customization by searching for scripts.
A Stream Deck or Touch Portal button can fire a script by sending its keyboard shortcut to your computer.
Resolve's native still saver only lets you pick the file format, so a custom script can add resolution, square exports, and transparency.
Resolve has two scripts folders, and a script placed in either one shows up under Workspace then Scripts.
Scripting is increasingly limited in the free version of Resolve, so the approach is best suited to Studio.

Takeaway

Let AI write your Resolve scripts

WHAT TO LEARN

Resolve can be scripted, and an AI can write the script from a plain prompt, so repetitive edits become one-click tools.

The Resolve console talks directly to the program, and a script is just those same commands saved in a plain-text .lua file.
Ask an AI for a script by describing the exact behavior you want, including any interface, then download the file it gives you.
Place the file in either of Resolve's two Utility scripts folders and it appears under Workspace then Scripts.
If a script does nothing, run it with the console open and paste any red error text back into the AI to get a fixed file.
Assign keyboard shortcuts to scripts through Keyboard Customization, and trigger them from a Stream Deck or Touch Portal for speed.
Scripts can fix gaps in Resolve itself, such as copying preset settings across presets or saving stills at a chosen resolution with transparency.
Scripting is increasingly limited in the free version of Resolve, so this workflow is realistic mainly for Studio users.

Glossary

Terms worth knowing.

Lua script: A small text file written in the Lua language that tells DaVinci Resolve to perform a set of actions. Saved with a .lua extension and placed in the scripts folder.
Resolve console: A panel under Workspace in DaVinci Resolve where you can type or paste code to make the program do something directly, and where error messages from scripts appear.
Preset: A saved set of effects, generators, titles, or transitions with custom settings that can be dropped onto a timeline. Different from a script, which runs code.
Fusion page: The node-based compositing and motion graphics area inside DaVinci Resolve, where text and effects are built.
Touch Portal: An iPad and phone app that creates buttons which send keyboard shortcuts to your computer, similar to a Stream Deck.

Resources

Things they pointed at.

03:25toolChatGPT

06:25toolDaVinci Resolve 21.1 AI assistance

08:20toolTouch Portal

09:00productFree scripts pack (Greg Edits)

10:25productGreg Edits preset pack

Quotables

Lines you could clip.

03:22

“You don't have to learn even one bit of coding. All you need to do is ask AI just to do it for you.”

tight, self-contained promise→ TikTok hook↗ Tweet quote

02:56

“You want to be spending your time on the creative side of things rather than just clicking the same thing over and over.”

clear editor pain point→ newsletter pull-quote↗ Tweet quote

The Script

Word for word.

Read-along

Don't just watch it. Burn it in.

See every word as it's spoken — crank it to 2× and still catch all of it. The same dual-channel trick behind Amazon's Kindle + Audible.

I asked ChatGBT to build me a custom DaVinci Resolve tool and within two minutes it just did it. So now I've got a script that colors every clip on my timeline exactly how I want it and it does it instantly. And here's another one that I built where I can copy an image from a website and then paste it onto my timeline.

So in this video I'm going to show you exactly how to create your own custom scripts. And then I'm going to show you all of the free scripts that I've made that you can use to really speed up your editing.

So DaVinci Resolve actually gives you the option to control it via code. And don't worry, you don't need to know how to write this code. You just need to know that it's possible.

So if you come to workspace and then click on console, you'll see this pop up. And think of this as a way to basically talk directly to DaVinci Resolve's brain. So instead of clicking on these controls on the outside, you're basically just saying directly to Resolve, do this exact thing for me.

And it just... does it so as a very basic example if i have this text plus node on the fusion page and i paste this code into the console and hit enter it changes the title to say hello and that is a very very basic example but essentially i've just said to resolve please do this for me and it's just done it but the console isn't the only way to tell resolve to do things like this the other way is by basically packaging up these same commands into things called scripts so if i open up a basic text edit app and set this to plain text like this Then I can paste in that same command, hit save and then name this something like hello.

And then I just have to make sure to call it a .lua file like this. Then I can pop it into my DaVinci Resolve scripts folder, which I'll show you how to find that later. And then inside of Resolve, I can come up to workspace scripts and you'll see I have this hello script here.

And then if I hit this, you'll see it's changed my text to say hello. Now you can make these scripts do a ton of different things in Resolve. You can get them to organize your clips into different bins, cut up timelines.

You can even make scripts that have their own control panels like this. So this is just a script. It has its own interface and its own buttons that do their own.

thing but it's still just a script. Just a bunch of code that has built out this plugin. And I made this script to allow me to copy the exact settings from a preset and then paste it onto other presets because Resolve basically doesn't let you do this natively.

So if I want to copy the font and color from this preset onto these presets I can tick font and color and then select these presets and hit paste and it just does it. meaning I can do this across a whole timeline instead of having to individually change each one. And this is what makes scripts so powerful.

You can make them to get rid of repetitive, mind -numbing tasks that you don't need to be doing as an editor because you want to be spending your time on the creative side of things rather than just clicking the same thing over and over if you need to make a batch change. So you're probably thinking, well, this all sounds great.

but I don't have the time to learn how to code all of this stuff. And the good thing for you is that you don't have to learn even one bit of coding. All you need to do is ask AI just to do it for you.

AI has gotten really good at writing scripts for Resolve. I've made it build tons of custom scripts for my workflow, some of which I've shared with you on this channel. And here's exactly how you can do it too.

So for this example, I'm going to use ChatGPT using the Astra model, but you can use whichever AI you like to use. And it doesn't have to be as powerful as Astra either. So I can give ChatGPT a simple prompt like this.

build me a DaVinci Resolve Lua script that pops up with a UI that allows me to search for a word or phrase and then when I hit search it gives me a list of all the titles on the timeline that contain that word or phrase. If I click on any of the titles in the list it will then move the playhead to that position on the timeline and then four minutes later ChatGPT has built me this Lua file which I can then download and then all I have to do is put it into my scripts folder.

Now DaVinci Resolve actually has two separate scripts folders. I'm not really sure why, but you can basically put these script files into one of these two folders and they'll show up in the correct place in Resolve either way. So if you're on a Mac, all you have to do is open up your Finder, come up to go and then go to folder and then this pops up.

Alternatively, you can just hit shift command G on your keyboard and then just paste in this file path. I'll leave this in the description below for you to copy and paste and then just hit enter and it takes you to this utility folder, which is where your scripts live. If you're on Windows, open up your file explorer and then click in the file path section here and paste in this path.

This will also be in the description below. and then hit Enter. And it takes you to the same utility folder.

So all I have to do is copy the Lua file that ChatGPT built me and paste it in here. And then when I open up Resolve and come to Workspace and then Scripts, I can see it right here. And then if I click on it, it opens up this little UI box where I can type a word up here.

Hit Search, and then it gives me a list of all the times this word is used in a title on the timeline. And then if I click on any of these, you can see that it moves the playhead to those titles on the timeline. And you can see those titles have that word in them.

It's really as easy as that. And if you have any issues or want to change anything in your script, you can just ask AI to change it and it'll give you a new file. If you try and run your script and nothing happens, come to workspace and then click on console.

Then click on this in the top left and then run the script again. If you see some red writing pop up here, just copy this into your AI and it will then be able to fix whatever the problem is and give you a new file to try. And if you want the AI to be even more accurate, then you can give it direct access to DaVinci Resolve to test and troubleshoot these scripts for you.

And this is exactly what the big version 21 .1 AI update does. I made a video all about how DaVinci Resolve now lets your AI talk directly to it. So you can ask it to create a new project and put your clips into the timeline and cut it all up and it just...

does it? All you have to do to set this up is head up to file and then set up AI assistance. Then you'll get this pop -up and then you might get Claude or ChatGPT pop -up where you just have to follow the on -screen prompts to get it all connected.

And that's it. You can close this and you're ready to go. You can then ask AI to do something and it will just do it in Resolve for you.

But when AI does these things, it's just doing it by building a series of scripts. So when you're using it to build your own script, you can ask it to test it out for you and do any troubleshooting steps automatically, which just makes the whole process even easier. But having to come up to workspace and then scripts and then clicking on a script is a bit of a faff.

So what I love to do with scripts to make them feel even more polished is I run them with a keyboard shortcut. And you can set up keyboard shortcuts for any script inside of DaVinci Resolve.

All you need to do is come up to DaVinci Resolve and then keyboard customization. Then in the search box, just type scripts. then you can open up the scripts drop down and you can find all of your scripts here where you can click next to them here and give them any keyboard shortcut that you want so with my paste image clip from the start of the video i can give this script the shortcut ctrl shift v as Command V is the normal paste shortcut.

Then I can go on a website, right click on an image and hit copy image. Then in Resolve, I can hit Control Shift V and it pastes that image straight to my timeline. And the file for this image will be saved in the folder that matches whichever folder has been used most in the timeline.

That way it all stays in one place. And if you've got a Stream Deck or an iPad app like Touch Portal, then you can create a button like this that sends that same keyboard shortcut to your computer so you can run any script instantly like this.

And that's the beauty of all of this. You can create these scripts to be fully customized for your exact workflow. So if there's something that you do over and over or you think could be made easier, then you can just ask AI if it can build a script for you to do that exact thing.

Just bear in mind that DaVinci Resolve keeps limiting what scripts can do in the free version of Resolve. So I'd only recommend doing this if you're using the paid studio version of Resolve. I've made so many of these scripts for my editing and I've given out a bunch of them on my channel.

And if you want to get my free scripts, you can download them from the link in the description below. So here's a quick rundown of some of the scripts that I've been able to build. First up is Preset Saver.

Preset Saver lets you save any preset with custom settings as a new preset. So for example, if you have a preset like my sidebar preset, then you can give it custom branding and make it look exactly how you want it to look.

And then you can save a new version of it with these exact settings on. meaning when you drop the new version onto the timeline, it's all ready to go. So if you make a custom pop up animation with my in and out transitions preset, you can save that as well.

And now whenever you want something to pop up, it will do the exact same animation. And if you don't know what presets are, presets are completely different to scripts. They are effects, generators, titles and transitions that you can use in your edits to up the level of your videos and make editing.

faster and easier. And after editing videos for YouTubers and worldwide brands like Rubix for over 10 years, I'd used quite a few third party presets in that time that never quite worked how I wanted them to. So I built my own pack of presets that I use on every single video that I edit.

They're built specifically for saving time and making my life easier. and now editors from all over the world are using these same presets and I'm receiving emails like this about how much they're enjoying using them. So if you want to save time when you're editing and make your life easier you can check out my preset pack in the description below and join all of the other editors who are editing faster by using the pack.

But going back to my scripts, the next one I built is called Image Saver. This one lets you save a still image of the current frame, but it basically just gives you more options than the built in still image saver in Resolve. Because with the native one, you don't have the option to change the frame size or the resolution.

the only option you have is the file format. Whereas with mine, you can pick the exact resolution or use these quick buttons to set it. And also this won't distort the image.

So if you save it as a square, it will save it exactly as you'd want it to. And also if you're in a transparent fusion composition, then you can save your image with a transparent background as well, which is a handy option to have. Next up is a couple of export tools that I built when I did my export settings video.

The first one is called render notification, and this one pops up with a notification and plays a custom sound when your exports finished rendering. So, for example, I have mine set up so that it plays a lightsaber sound like this. And then I can just click on show video to open up where the video is.

and this second export script that i made is specifically for if you're setting up youtube chapters so you know at the bottom of the youtube play you have these little chapters like this if you add markers to your timeline and resolve to name each chapter then you can run my script and it will format the chapters exactly the way that youtube wants it so you can just copy and paste this into your video description and it's done then you'll have those same chapters on your YouTube video.

And then the last two scripts I've actually already shown earlier in this video. One of them is the copy preset attributes tool, and the other one is the paste clipboard image. So this is six scripts that you can get completely for free in the description below.

Or you can just use AI to make your own scripts and customize your workflow exactly as you like it. But being able to customize your workflow of scripts can only get you so far. To save even more time with your editing, you need to be using your own custom keyboard shortcuts.

So watch this video here to see exactly how you can set up your own custom keyboard shortcuts in DaVinci Resolve to instantly bring things like effects and titles straight to your timeline. And also, of course, to activate any scripts that you've made as well.

The Hook

The bait, then the rug-pull.

A Resolve editor asks ChatGPT for a custom tool and gets a working script in minutes. He then shows the whole path from prompt to shortcut, and hands out six free scripts built the same way.

Frameworks