The Editor’s Guide to

DaVinci
Resolve 17

Download
DAVINCI
RESOLVE 17
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Author: Chris Roberts
THE EDITOR’S GUIDE TO

DAVINCI RESOLVE 17

by Chris Roberts
The Editor’s Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17
Chris Roberts
Copyright © 2021 by Blackmagic Design Pty Ltd
Blackmagic Design
www.blackmagicdesign.com
To report errors, please send a note to [email protected].
Series Editor: Patricia Montesion
Editor: Dan Foster
Contributing Authors: Jason Druss, Mary Plummer, Dion Scoppettuolo, Daria Fissoun,
Rory Cantrell
Cover Design: Blackmagic Design
Layout: Danielle Foster

Notice of Rights
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For information
on getting permission for reprints and excerpts, contact [email protected].
Notice of Liability
Neither the author nor Blackmagic Design shall have any liability to any person or entity for any loss or damage caused or
alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the information contained in this book, or by omissions from this book, or by
the computer software and hardware products described within it.
Trademarks
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks.
Where those designations appear in this book, and Blackmagic Design was aware of a trademark claim, the designations
appear as requested by the owner of the trademark. All other product names and services identified throughout this book
are used in editorial fashion only and for the benefit of such companies with no intention of infringement of the trademark.
No such use, or the use of any trade name, is intended to convey endorsement or other affiliation with this book.
((Mac) and (macOS) are registered trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Windows is a
registered trademarks of Microsoft Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
ISBN 13: 978-1-7369825-2-5
Contents iii

Foreword ix

Contents
Getting Started ix
Acknowledgments xiv
About the Authors xiv

1 Editing in the Edit Page 1

Setting Up a Project 2
Creating Bins 7
Exploring Viewing Options 13
Creating the First Assemble 20
Trim Edit Mode 38
Adding Music 39
Shuffle Insert Edits 43
Trimming to Duration 44
Finessing the Edit 49
Audio Mixing 60
Adding Transitions 65
Adding Fusion Titles 68
Continue Cutting 72
Lesson Review 73

2 Edit Preparation and Organization 75

Backing Up Source Files 76
Syncing Audio to Video 85
Modifying Clip Audio Channels 91
Configuring Metadata Presets 96
Importing Metadata 101
Renaming Clips with Metadata 104
Searching Using Metadata 108
Using Automatic Smart Bins 110
Smart Bins for People 113
iv Creating Custom Smart Bins 119
Power Bins 123
Contents

Creating Proxy Files for Editing 124

Saving Project Presets 132
Lesson Review 135

3 Editing Interviews 137

Starting the Project 138
Importing a “Selects” Timeline 141
Using Stacked Timelines 151
Decomposing Timelines 161
Creating Variable Speed Changes 165
Using Smooth Cut 171
Working with Advanced Transition Tools 173
Lesson Review 177

4 Cutting a Dialogue Scene 179

Selecting Your Best Takes 180
Editing with Continuity 193
Match Frame with an Offset 199
Finish Cutting the Scene 203
Choosing from Multiple Takes 203
Going Beyond the Straight Cut 213
Trimming On-the-Fly 218
Putting Yourself to the Test 221
Dynamic Trim Mode 222
Lesson Review 225

5 Multicamera Editing 227

Starting a Multicamera Project 228
Switching Angles in the Timeline 237
Editing a Multicamera Music Video 244
Real-Time Multicamera Editing 252
 Adjusting the Multicamera Edit 260 v

Adjusting a Multicam Clip 262

Contents
Lesson Review 267

6 Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor 269

Setting Up the Project 270
Cut Page Overview 271
Speed Editor Overview 274
Sorting the Media Pool 278
Viewing Clips Using Source Tape 283
Navigating Using the Speed Editor 292
Rough Cutting the Opening Shots 295
Splitting, Deleting, and Moving Clips 298
Trimming Using the Speed Editor 301
Adding the Soundbites 304
Adding an Audio-Only Soundbite 309
Syncing the Second Camera 310
Using the Sync Bin 313
Adding Close-Ups 319
Adding Cutaways 322
Adding Graphics and Transitions 327
Adding Music and Adjusting Audio Levels 329
Extra Credit 333
Randomized Multicamera Fun 334
Lesson Review 337

7 Compositing in the Edit Page 339

Stabilizing the Interview 340
Editing to Different Video Tracks 344
Creating a Compound Clip 355
Animating the Compound Clip 356
Opening a Compound Clip 368
vi Cropping the Interview 371
Creating an Animated Background 374
Contents

Adding Effects to a Compound Clip 383

Working with Traveling Mattes 386
Adjustment Clips 402
Using FairlightFX in the Edit Page 404
Render in Place 407
Lesson Review 411

8 Edit Page Effects 413

Setting Up the Project 414
3D Keyer FX 416
Transform FX 426
Video Collage 433
Creating Tiles with Video Collage 448
Lesson Review 459

9 Editing and Mixing Audio 461

Preparing the Project 462
Balancing the Dialogue Clips 465
Replacing Lines from Other Takes 471
Enhancing the Scene 476
Panning Tracks in Acoustic Space 479
Adding Layers for More Atmosphere 483
Creating a Radio Effect 490
Simplifying the Mix 500
Mixing with the Mixer 507
Adding More Mains 509
Recording Automation in Fairlight 516
Measuring Loudness 522
Lesson Review 527
10 Delivering Projects 529 vii

Preparing the Projects 530

Contents
Quick Export 533
Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios 539
Smart Reframe (Studio Only) 549
Using the Deliver Page 552
Exporting AAF for Pro Tools 555
Adding Subtitles 557
Exporting with Subtitles 572
Exporting Audio Tracks 573
Changing and Rendering Jobs from Multiple Projects 576
Media Managing Timelines 581
Lesson Review 585

Index 587
Foreword ix

Foreword
Welcome to The Editor’s Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17
DaVinci Resolve 17 is the only postproduction solution that brings editing, color correction,
audio post, and visual effects together in the same software application! The most exciting
thing about DaVinci Resolve 17 is the revolutionary new cut page, which is designed specifically
for the fastest possible editing when working with tight deadlines. It’s an alternative edit
page with a newly styled editing interface that eliminates unnecessary steps to edit, plus
it’s combined with new tools, all designed to help you work faster than ever before.
DaVinci Resolve 17 also includes even more advanced color correction, powerful new editing
options on the traditional edit page, vastly improved Fairlight digital audio tools, and even
faster 2D and 3D visual effects compositing on the Fusion page. DaVinci Resolve 17 enables
you to switch between creative tasks without having to export or translate files between
different applications!
Best of all, DaVinci Resolve 17 is absolutely free! Plus, we’ve made sure that the free version
of DaVinci Resolve actually includes more features than any paid editing system. That’s
because at Blackmagic Design we believe everybody should have the tools to create
professional, Hollywood-caliber content without having to spend thousands of dollars.
I hope you’ll enjoy using DaVinci Resolve 17, and we can’t wait to see the amazing work
you produce!

Grant Petty
Blackmagic Design
 x
Getting Started
Welcome to Advanced Editing with DaVinci Resolve 17, an official Blackmagic Design
Getting Started

certified training book that teaches professionals and students how to get the most out of
editing with DaVinci Resolve 17. All you need is a Mac or Windows computer,
DaVinci Resolve 17, and a passion to learn about editing.
This guide blends practical, hands-on exercises with the aesthetics of editing to help you
discover new techniques for whatever editing tasks you take on. You will learn new editing
functions, trimming styles, and multilayered timeline capabilities. You’ll also go deeply into
audio editing and mixing in the Fairlight page to explore techniques used by professional
audio engineers to enhance the sound design in your projects.
After completing this book, you are encouraged to take the 50-question online proficiency
exam to receive a Certificate of Completion from Blackmagic Design. The link is located
on the DaVinci Resolve training web page: www.blackmagicdesign.com/products​
/davinciresolve/training

About DaVinci Resolve 17

DaVinci Resolve is the world’s fastest growing and most advanced editing software. It also
has a long history of being the world’s most trusted application for color correction. With
DaVinci Resolve 17, Blackmagic Design has added an alternative editing page, called the
Cut page. Designed specifically for editors working on commercials, news and other short
form, quick turn around projects, the Cut page is all about speed.
What you will Learn xi

In these lessons you’ll work with multiple projects to learn advanced, practical techniques

Getting Started
used in several editing genres. You’ll acquire real-world skills that you can apply to real-
world productions.

Lesson 1
Covers basic editing techniques in the Edit Page.

Lesson 2
Reveals some of the most powerful features in Resolve’s Media page to help you more
efficiently set up and organize projects. One exercise covers the new Proxy Media
Workflow.

Lessons 3 & 4
Use two different film and television genres (a dramatic dialogue scene and a documentary
interview) to teach you advanced editing techniques and trimming styles in the Edit page.

Lesson 5
Explores all the tools and techniques for multicamera editing in the Edit page.

Lesson 6
Explores how the Cut Page enables you to edit faster. This lesson also shows you the
power of using the new DaVinci Resolve Speed editor with the Cut Page.

Lesson 7
Focus on motion graphics and visual effects that, as an editor, you will commonly be asked
to create. By using a variety of compositing, keying and tracking tools all inside the Edit
page, you will produce professional-quality opening graphics and realistic composites.

Lesson 8
Dive deeper into three ResolveFX that are new to the Edit Page for motion graphics and
visual effects.

Lesson 9
Takes you through a sound editing, design, and mixing workflow in the Edit and Fairlight page.

Lesson 10
Shows how to add subtitles and output a project with different sound mixes based on the
audio work you did in Lesson 9. This lesson also covers using the Smart Reframe tool
(Studio-only) to quickly reframe your project for different aspect ratios.
xii The Blackmagic Design Training and Certification Program
Blackmagic Design publishes several training books that take your skills farther in
DaVinci Resolve 17. They include:
Getting Started

‚ The Beginner’s Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17

‚ The Colorist Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17
‚ The Editor’s Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17
‚ The Fairlight Audio Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17
‚ The Visual Effects Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17
Whether you want an introductory guide to DaVinci Resolve or you want to learn more
advanced editing techniques, color grading, sound mixing, or visual effects, our certified
training program includes a learning path for you.
After completing this book, you are encouraged to take a 1-hour, 50-question online
proficiency exam to receive a certificate of completion from Blackmagic Design. The link
to the online exam can be found on the Blackmagic Design training web page.The web
page also provides additional information on our official Training and Certification Program.
Please visit www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve/training.

The Beginner’s Guide to The Colorist Guide to The Fairlight Audio Guide to The Visual Effects Guide to

DaVinci DaVinci DaVinci DaVinci

Resolve 17 Resolve 17 Resolve 17 Resolve 17

Download Download Download Download

DAVINCI DAVINCI DAVINCI DAVINCI
RESOLVE 17 RESOLVE 17 RESOLVE 17 RESOLVE 17
Free! Free! Free! Free!
Author: Dion Scoppettuolo Author: Daria Fissoun, CSI Author: Mary Plummer Author: Dion Scoppettuolo, Damian Allen, Tony Gallard

System Requirements
This book supports DaVinci Resolve 17 for Mac and Windows. If you have an older version of
DaVinci Resolve, you must upgrade to the current version to follow along with the lessons.

NOTE  The exercises in this book refer to file and resource locations that will differ
if you are using the version of software from the Apple Mac App Store. For the
purposes of this training book, if you are using macOS we recommend downloading
the DaVinci Resolve software from the Blackmagic Design website, and not the
Mac App store.
Download DaVinci Resolve xiii

To download the free version of DaVinci Resolve 17 or later from the Blackmagic Design website:

Getting Started
1 Open a web browser on your Windows or Mac computer.
2 In the address field of your web browser, type:
www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve.
3 On the DaVinci Resolve landing page, click the Download button.
4 On the download page, click the Mac or Windows button, depending on your
computer’s operating system.
5 Follow the installation instructions to complete the installation.
When you have completed the software installation, follow the instructions in the following
section, “Copying the Lesson Files,” to download the content for this book.

Copying the Lesson Files

The DaVinci Resolve lesson files must be downloaded to your Mac or Windows computer
to perform the exercises in this book. After you save the files to your hard disk, extract the
file and copy the folder to your Movies folder (Mac) or Videos folder (Windows).

To Download and Install the DaVinci Resolve Lesson Files:

When you are ready to download the lesson files, follow these steps:
1 Open a web browser on your Windows or Mac computer.
2 In the address field of your web browser, type:
www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve/training.
3 Scroll the page until you locate the Editor’s Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17.
4 Click the link to download the media. The file is roughly 13 GB in size.
5 After downloading the zip file to your Mac or Windows computer, open your
Downloads folder and double-click the file to unzip it if it doesn’t unzip automatically.
You’ll end up with a folder named R17 Editing that contains all the content for this book.
6 From your Downloads folder, drag the R17 Editing folder to your Movies folder (Mac)
or Videos folder (Windows). These folders can be found within your User folder on
either platform.
You are now ready to begin Lesson 1.

Getting Certified
After completing this book, you are encouraged to take the one-hour, 50-question online
proficiency exam to receive a Certificate of Completion from Blackmagic Design. The link
to this exam is located at the end of this book.
xiv
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank the following individuals for their contributions of media used
Acknowledgments  •  About the Authors

throughout the book:

‚ Brian J. Terwilliger—Living in the Age of Airplanes
‚ DISUNITY—Garth de Bruno Austin- Banovich Studios
‚ Miss Rachel’s Pantry in Philadelphia, PA.
‚ Miserable Girl—Jitterbug Riot—EditStock ad
‚ HaZ Dulull for SYNC footage—Sync is a short proof of concept film written / produced
and directed by Hasraf ‘HaZ’ Dulull and is property of hazfilm.com.
Hasraf ‘ HaZ’ Dulull started his career as a Visual Effects Supervisor / Producer before
establishing a reputation from his sci-fi short films—Project Kronos, I.R.I.S and Sync for
depicting grounded sci-fi themes. This lead him to producing, writing and directing his
first Feature film—The Beyond—Released by Gravitas Ventures and currently available
on all streaming platforms, and soon after he directed Origin Unknown (based on his
original story) starring Katee Sackhoff to be released by Kew Media later in 2018. He is
currently in development and production on a slate of TV and Feature Films.
HaZ is represented in Hollywood by APA & Ground Control Entertainment. HaZ can be
found on twitter @hazvfx.

About the Authors

Chris Roberts has over 20 years editing experience and has cut many types of programs
from online corporate promos to broadcast television. He has been delivering video editing
training since 2003 and has worked with non-linear editing software from Avid, Apple, and
Adobe. Over the years he has trained all sorts of editors from university students and staff,
to broadcast journalists; sports, factual, and drama editors. As a Blackmagic Certified
Master Trainer he has been responsible for delivering DaVinci Resolve training across
Europe. He lives in Worcestershire, UK with his partner Samantha, and when not working,
enjoys reading post-apocalyptic fiction, listening to hard rock and blues music, and
binge-watching the TV he has invariably missed.
Rory Cantwell is an editor with over 25 years in the industry and has worked for several of
the major broadcasters, post-production facilities, and advertising agencies over the years,
creating a diverse range of content and working in many different genres. Based in the UK,
he is a founding partner in Soho Editors Ltd; Europe’s, leading post-production talent
agency and a training centre for Black Magic Design, based in the heart of London.
A certified trainer of Apple Final Cut Studio, Autodesk Smoke, and Final Cut Pro X, and a
Master Trainer for Blackmagic DaVinci Resolve, Rory initially fell in love with Resolve’s
incredible colour-grading toolset before embracing it as his favourite editor.
Lesson 1

Editing in the Edit Page

Editing is so central to cinematic storytelling Time

that director Francis Ford Coppola once said, This lesson takes approximately
70 minutes to complete.
“The essence of cinema is editing.” This book
explores the essence of cinema through the Goals
deep and powerful editing features found in Setting Up a Project 2
DaVinci Resolve as applied to the art and
Creating Bins 7
craft of editing and storytelling.
Exploring Viewing Options 13
Whether you are working to cut the latest
Creating the First Assemble 20
cinematic blockbuster, a fast-turnaround
Trim Edit Mode 38
commercial spot, an episodic TV show, or an
entire web series, the tools and technology Adding Music 39

available to you in DaVinci Resolve, together Shuffle Insert Edits 43

with the techniques discussed and Trimming to Duration 44
demonstrated throughout this book, will help Finessing the Edit 49
you achieve your vision. Audio Mixing 60
The Edit page supports the approach to Adding Transitions 65
nonlinear editing that has been battle tested Adding Fusion Titles 68
by editors around the world for decades.
Continue Cutting 72
In this lesson, you will learn those techniques
Lesson Review 73
so you can apply them to your own editing
workflows.
 2
Setting Up a Project
Editing is often an iterative process that requires you to build a coherent story from
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

disparate pieces of footage. While there are many recognized workflows for putting these
sounds and pictures together, unfortunately there is no “magic bullet,” as every cut has its
own unique considerations.
With that said, you will start by editing a short trailer for an upcoming documentary entitled
Age of Airplanes by Brian J. Terwilliger, so you can appreciate some of the thought
processes and happy accidents that often occur in editing suites around the world.
You will begin this lesson by opening a project archive in which all the media has been
imported and some bins have already been created.
1 Open DaVinci Resolve to display the Project Manager.

2 Right-click any empty place in the Project Manager and choose Import Project.
3 In the system file window that appears, navigate to R17 Editing/Lessons and select the 3
file R17 EDITING LESSON 01 START.drp.

Setting Up a Project
NOTE  The file extension .drp is used for DaVinci Resolve Project files.

4 Click Open.

The project is added to the Project Manager.

 4
NOTE  DaVinci Resolve does not “open” project files directly from your
system. Instead, .drp files are imported into the current project database. For
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

more information on creating and managing databases and project files,

please refer to The Beginner’s Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17.

5 Double-click the R17 EDITING LESSON 01 START project to open it.

Your new project opens in DaVinci Resolve on the page last used in the application.
6 If necessary, click the Edit page button.

7 Select Workspace > Reset UI Layout to reset the Edit page workspace to the default
configuration.

Before you begin editing with the clips in this project, you’ll need to relink the clips in
this project to their media files on your computer’s hard drive.
8 In the top left of the interface, above the media pool, click the Relink Media button. 5

Setting Up a Project
9 The Relink Media window appears telling you how many files are currently offline.

TIP  Place your mouse over the location where Resolve expected to find the
files for more detail as to the location of the files you need.

10 Click the Locate button, and in the file window that appears, navigate to the R17 Editing
folder and click Open.
 6 Resolve will automatically search and recognize the file structure inside this folder, and
then relink the media files for you.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

NOTE  In case Resolve cannot find the appropriate files, you can initiate a
more comprehensive search from the Relink Media window using the Disk
Search button. Be aware, though, that this search may take much longer if you
have very large hard drives with lots of media files to search through!

Once the clips have been successfully relinked, you can now start organizing this
first project.
Creating Bins 7

The most common method of organizing clips within a project is to use bins. Bins allow you

Creating Bins
to place the clips into folders within your project in a similar way you’re no doubt organizing
files elsewhere on your computer. You will start by creating a few bins to help categorize
the clips you have for this project; however, in later lessons you will learn much more
sophisticated ways of organizing your projects.

NOTE  The term bin is used in nonlinear editing parlance to refer to a folder
because it was derived from the traditional method film editors used of sorting
their strips of film by hanging them over a physical bin.

1 To create your first bin, select the Master bin in the media pool and choose File > New Bin.

A new bin is created inside the Master bin called Bin 1.

2 Click the name for Bin 1 to highlight it and type Interviews to rename the bin.
 8 3 Reselect the Master bin.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

The first three clips are interviews with the director Brian J. Terwilliger.
4 Shift-click the three interview clips and then drag them to the Interviews bin.
 The selected clips are moved into the Interviews bin. 9

5 Click the Interviews bin to see the interview clips.

Creating Bins
6 Choose File > New Bin or press Shift-Command-N (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-N (Windows)
to create a second new bin, called Bin 2.

7 Rename this bin Audio Clips.

8 Select the Master bin again.

The audio clips in this project are represented by clips that green waveforms.
10 9 Select all the audio clips in the Master bin and drag them to the Audio Clips bin you
just created.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

10 Right-click an empty space in the bin list sidebar to the left of the main media pool
window and choose New Bin.

11 Rename this new bin Titles.

12 From the Master bin, select the titles clip AOA Movie Credits and move it to the
Titles bin.
13 Next, select all the remaining video clips in the Master bin, right-click the selected 11
clips, and choose Create Bin With Selected Clips.

Creating Bins
14 Rename the new bin B-Roll.

You will need just one further bin for this project, although you’ll leave it empty for
the moment.
12 15 Create a fifth bin called Timelines.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

Finally, you can choose a sort order for the bins in your project.
16 Right-click any of the bins in the bin list and choose Sort By > Name.
 The bins are placed into ascending alphabetical order in the bin list. 13

Exploring Viewing Options

NOTE  The main media pool window has its own sorting options you will
look at next.

Exploring Viewing Options

You have several ways you can view clips in the media pool depending on your preference.
Currently the clips are being displayed as thumbnails. This view gives a nice reference
image you can use to locate a clip visually.
1 Select the B-Roll bin.
This bin contains a number of different clips of airplanes in various locations around
the world.
2 Use the slider at the top of the media pool to resize the thumbnail images.

TIP  Resizing the thumbnails also gives more room to display longer
clip names.

3 Place your mouse pointer (no need to click) over the clip called AOA07 Kenya.
The clip under your mouse pointer is automatically opened in the source viewer.
14 4 Move your mouse pointer right and left across the AOA07 Kenya clip to live preview
the clip in the source viewer.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

The main advantage of using the thumbnail view is that you can use the Live Media
Preview function to quickly scrub through the clips in the media pool to find the clip
that you want.
You can also change the order in which the clips are arranged.
5 Click the Sort menu at the top of the media pool.

By default, the clips in this bin are arranged in ascending alphabetical order by
clip name.
6 Click Start TC from the Sort menu. 15

Exploring Viewing Options

Now the clips are being arranged by their starting timecodes; clips with the earliest starting
timecodes are displayed higher in the order than clips with a later starting timecode.
16
List View
List View is another way you may choose to display clips in the media pool.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

1 Click the List View button at the top of the media pool.

The clips in the media pool are now displayed as a list of clips, with additional columns
to the right of the clip name displaying additional metadata about each clip.

Notice the Start TC column’s name is highlighted, and a small upward arrow is also
displayed in the column header. This indicates that the clips are still ordered by
ascending starting timecodes.
2 Click the header at the top of the Clip Name column. 17

Exploring Viewing Options

Now the clips are arranged back into ascending alphabetical order of clip names.

NOTE  In List view, the Sort menu is not available. This is because you use the
column names to choose the order in which the clips are listed.

The main advantage of using the List view is that you can see much more information
about each of the clips within your media pool, allowing you to compare clips together
rather than individually. However, this view often requires much more horizontal space
for the media pool.

Metadata View
DaVinci Resolve 17 introduces a third way of viewing clips in the media pool. The new
Metadata view is a cross between the Thumbnail and List views.
1 Click the Metadata View button at the top of the media pool.
18 The clips are now displayed with a thumbnail and commonly used metadata
information.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

NOTE  As in the Thumbnail view, the thumbnail image in Metadata view can
be live previewed; however, audio clips are not displayed in the Metadata
view display, being grouped instead at the top of the media pool as
thumbnails. Timelines are not displayed in Metadata view at all.

2 Click the Sort menu.

The Metadata view has its own, targeted Sort menu based on the viewable metadata.
3 Choose Clip Name from the Sort menu. 19

Exploring Viewing Options

The clips are reordered based on their clip names, which now become the dominant
part of the displayed metadata.
4 Select the second clip, AOA02 A380 Takeoff and click the Inspector button in the top-
right corner of the main interface window to open the Inspector.

5 Click the File tab in the Inspector.

20 The File Inspector lists useful information about the clip and a number of commonly
used metadata fields. This metadata can be adjusted using the File Inspector to affect
the sorting and searching of the clips in the media pool and timeline and even the
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

displayed clip name.

6 Close the Inspector and return the media pool to Thumbnail view (or your preferred
view) and sort the clips by Clip Name.

TIP  A quick way to reset the whole interface is to choose Workspace > Reset
UI Layout.

You are now ready to begin your first edit.

Creating the First Assemble

Someone once said that the hardest part of writing a book is starting the first chapter.
Indeed, the same is true for editing but with sounds and moving pictures rather than words
on a page. Placing those first few clips into an empty timeline can be quite daunting.
However, once you have begun assembling the footage you can begin to see what’s
working, what doesn’t work, and what might be coaxed into working with a bit of effort on
your part as the editor.
To start this process, you’ll need a timeline.
1 Select the Timelines bin, and choose File > New Timeline or press Command-N
(macOS) or Ctrl-N (Windows)
2 In the Timeline Name field in the New Timeline window, type Age of Airplanes Trailer. 21

Creating the First Assemble

3 Leave all other options set to their defaults and click Create.
A new timeline is created in the selected bin, and additional controls appear in the
timeline window.

NOTE  You can set the default starting timecode, number of video and audio
tracks, and audio track type for new timelines in DaVinci Resolve >
Preferences > User > Editing.
22 4 Select the Interviews bin and sort the clips by Clip Name.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

5 Double-click the clip 01_SHOOT THE REAL WORLD to open it in the source viewer.
6 Play the clip from the beginning to the end.

You probably don’t want to use the entire clip, but you can choose to remove the
unwanted parts later. There are never any right or wrong ways to edit, just more
efficient or less efficient ways.
7 Drag the clip from the source viewer to the timeline viewer. 23

Creating the First Assemble

A series of editing overlays appear, detailing the different types of edits available to you
in DaVinci Resolve. Seasoned editors probably recognize many of these options from
other NLEs, though some are specific to DaVinci Resolve. The default is Overwrite.
8 With the Overwrite edit overlay highlighted, release the mouse button.
Your first clip is edited into the timeline.

9 Play the clip back in the timeline and stop after Brian says the line “…shoot the
real world.”

This is where you’ll make your next edit.

24
Controlling Playback
An important part of learning to edit is effectively controlling the playback of your video. While
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

you could use the transport controls underneath the source or timeline viewers, keyboard
shortcuts are much more efficient. DaVinci Resolve’s default keyboard layout supports all the
usual shortcuts for playback that professional editors around the world recognize. For example,
you can use the Spacebar to start and stop playback and the Left and Right Arrow keys to
move forward and back one frame at a time. More experienced users will be happy to know
that the J, K, and L keys also control playback at different speeds. To explore DaVinci Resolve’s
keyboard layout in more detail, you can choose DaVinci Resolve > Keyboard Customization.

10 In the Interviews bin, double-click 02_IF IT DIDN’T MAKE THE MOVIE to open it in the
source monitor.
Play this clip through from the start. You only want to use a part of this clip. When
working with clips with audio like this, it’s useful to see a representation of the audio
waveform along with the video in the source viewer.
11 In the source viewer’s Options menu, select Show Zoomed Audio Waveform.
 An audio waveform is displayed in the source viewer. 25

Creating the First Assemble

How cool is that? Now as you scrub or play through this clip, you can see from the
waveform where he starts and stops speaking. Nice!
12 Play the clip from the start once more and then stop playback just before Brian says,
“If it was possible to shoot it, we wanted to go shoot it.” (at around 01:01:11:00).
26
NOTE  Throughout this book, timecode references are used as general
guidelines for where the author believes the edits work best. However, please
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

feel free to explore the footage and use different locations if you feel there
are better choices. Editing is, after all, a subjective as much as a
creative endeavor.

13 Press I to set an In point at this location.

14 Play the clip through and stop after Brian says “…everything was real” (at about
01:01:23:20).
15 Press O to set an Out point at this location. 27

Creating the First Assemble

16 In the timeline toolbar, click the Overwrite Clip button, or press F10.

NOTE  If you’re using DaVinci Resolve on macOS, you may need to configure
your keyboard settings in System Preferences to “Use F1, F2, etc. keys as
standard function keys” to use the default editing shortcuts. Alternatively, you
can use the fn key with any F-key to override the macOS shortcuts.

The second interview clip is edited into the timeline starting at the position of the
timeline playhead and using only the portion marked between the In and Out points in
the source. The end of the first clip has been overwritten by the new clip.
28 17 Press the Up Arrow on your keyboard to move your timeline playhead back to the edit
between the two interview clips.
18 Choose Playback > Play Around/To > Play Around Current Selection or press / (slash) to
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

review the edit.

TIP  The Play Around Current Selection command is very useful, as it allows
you to quickly review a portion of your timeline. In this case, because you had
no clips selected, the current “selection” you’re playing around is the
playhead location.
If you had a clip or several clips selected, then Resolve would have played
around that selection. The amount of time Resolve plays before the selection
and after the selection is set in DaVinci Resolve > Preferences, User tab,
Editing panel in the Pre-roll time and Post-roll time fields, respectively.

The edit is successful enough, but it’s a pretty nasty jump cut. You’ll need to add some
more footage around this interview to flesh out the story.

Three-Point Editing
With a few notable exceptions, every edit you perform is generally referred to as a three-point
edit. This means that DaVinci Resolve is calculating what you want to be edited and where you
want it edited. In the previous example, the In and Out points you marked in the source were
the first two points required; the third point was the position of the playhead in the timeline.
When you edited the first interview clip into the timeline, you were also using three-point
editing, even though you hadn’t set any In or Out points; Resolve used the clip in the source
viewer from the beginning (the implied In point) to the end (the implied Out point) and placed it
at the beginning of the timeline, not because it was the first clip but because that was where
the playhead was. Throughout the exercises in this lesson, try to work out the rules of
three-point editing that Resolve is following and how the In and Out points (real or implied)
are being used to complete the edits. In later lessons, you’ll also make some four-point edits
and edits that use In and Out points in different ways!
Insert Edits 29

It’s time to add some B-Roll footage to bring Brian’s passion for airplanes alive.

Creating the First Assemble

1 In the B-Roll bin, double-click the AOA02 A380 TAKEOFF clip to open it in the source
viewer. Play the clip from the start to review the footage.
2 Press I to set an In point a second or so before the plane’s wheels begin to lift off the
runway (around 01:00:07:00).

3 Press O to set an Out point once the tail of the plane has left the frame.
30 4 Ensure your timeline playhead is still on the edit point between the two interview clips
and drag the clip to the Insert overlay in the timeline viewer.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

The clip is added in between the two interview clips in the timeline but has been
inserted between them rather than overwriting the clip after the playhead.

5 Move the timeline playhead back to the edit between 01_SHOOT THE REAL WORLD
and AOA2 A380 TAKEOFF. This will be the location for your next edit.

NOTE  Using the Up and Down Arrow keys are fast ways of moving between
the different edit points in your timeline. If you prefer, you can always drag the
timeline playhead, and it will snap to the nearest edit point as long as your
Snapping option is enabled. Press N to toggle snapping on or off.
6 Double-click AOA01 A380 TAXI from the B-Roll bin in the media pool. 31

Creating the First Assemble

Play the clip through in the source viewer to review. This is a nice overhead shot
of the same type of plane as you’ve just edited into the timeline, but the audio is
a little distracting.
7 In the timeline, click the red outlined A1 Destination Control for the track Audio 1.

These destination controls allow you to specify which parts of the source audio or
video will be edited into the timeline. By disabling the A1 control, you will no longer
automatically edit the audio from the source clip.
8 Click the Insert Clip button in the timeline toolbar or press F9 to insert the new clip
(sans audio) into the timeline.

Cool. That’s looking a little more interesting. You’ll now insert a clip to split an
existing clip.
32 9 In the timeline, play through the second interview clip and stop after Brian says, “If it
was possible to shoot it, we wanted to go shoot it.”
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

This will be the location for your next edit.

10 In the media pool, double-click AOA10 MALDIVES and review the clip in the
source viewer.
11 Set an In point as you see the shadow of the plane begin to pass across the coral.

12 In the source viewer, type +300 and press Enter to jump the playhead forward
3 seconds.
13 Press O to set the Out point. 33

Creating the First Assemble

14 Press F9 to insert the clip into the timeline at the playhead position.

Did you see how this edit has inserted the marked source clip by splitting the existing
interview clip’s audio and video, even though we only had video to edit? This happened
because the Auto Track Selector control for the Audio 1 track is automatically enabled and
in this case is acting as a sync lock, helping to keep audio and video clips in sync later in
the timeline. You’ll learn more about the Auto Track Selector controls in later lessons.
34
Controlling Timeline Zoom
Resolve provides three options for controlling the zoom level for clips in the timeline: Full
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

Extent Zoom, Detail Zoom, and Custom Zoom.

Full Extent Zoom will always display the whole duration of your timeline in the timeline
window, automatically adjusting the zoom to keep everything in sight. This is most useful for
seeing a birds-eye view of your edit.

Detail Zoom scales the timeline to a closer view, centered on the playhead. This option is
most useful when you want to step into the timeline to select a clip or edit point to make some
fine adjustment.

Custom Zoom allows you to set your own zoom scale in the timeline. You can use the slider to
zoom in and out of the playhead location.

Useful keyboard shortcuts for zooming the timeline include Command-= (equals) and
Command—(minus) in macOS or Ctrl-= (equals) and Ctrl—(minus) in Windows to zoom in and
out, respectively.

Shift-Z toggles between fitting the timeline to the timeline window and returning you to the
previous zoom level.

Timeline track heights can be adjusted using the Timeline View options menu or by holding
Shift and using the mouse scroll wheel in either the audio or video areas of the timeline.
Removing Excess 35

OK, your edit is looking pretty good, and you’re now at the stage where you’re probably

Creating the First Assemble

thinking it may benefit from a little bit of trimming to remove some of the unwanted portions
of the footage.
1 Move the timeline playhead to the start of the middle interview clip and click the Detail
Zoom button.

2 Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) the video portion of the clip 02_IF IT
DIDN’T MAKE THE MOVIE in the timeline.

Do you notice the small chain icons on the video and audio of this clip? That means
the two parts of this clip are linked. This can be useful if you wanted to remove or move
both parts of this clip (meaning it would be quite difficult to move them out of sync with
each other, for example). By using the Option key (macOS) or Alt key (Windows) you’re
momentarily overriding the linking to select just the video portion of the clip.

NOTE  If you’re selecting both parts of the clip with the Option key (macOS) or
the Alt key (Windows), make sure the Link Selection function is currently active.
36 3 Right-click the selected video clip and select Ripple Delete from the shortcut menu or
press Shift-Delete (Backspace).
The video portion of the clip is removed, and the remaining audio tucks nicely under
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

the preceding shot of the A380 taking off.

Did you notice what else happened in the timeline? Because you performed a ripple
delete, it meant you didn’t leave a gap and the rest of the footage in the timeline moved
up. More to the point, the audio and video in the last interview clip remained in sync.
Again, this is due to the Auto Select control being enabled on all tracks by default.

NOTE  If you want to see what would happen with the Auto Select control
looking out for you, undo the last step and disable the Auto Select control for
the Audio 1 track and repeat the last few steps. Remember to re-enable Auto
Select for Audio 1 afterward.

Another way to remove sections of clips from your timeline is using In and Out points.
4 Click the Full Extent Zoom button and play through the last clip on the timeline.
You will remove the line “…stay at that location longer…” as it’s a little repetitive and
unnecessary.
5 Play through the last clip on the timeline and set an In point just before Brian says
“… stay…” (around 01:00:28:00).

6 From the timeline toolbar, click the Blade Edit mode button or press B.
7 With Blade Edit mode selected, position your mouse at the playhead location and click 37
the 02_IT DOESN’T MAKE THE MOVIE clip to add an edit point.

Creating the First Assemble

8 Play forward and stop before he says “…or it didn’t make the movie” (around 01:00:29:05).
9 Add another edit point by clicking at the playhead location on the clip.

10 In the timeline toolbar, click the Selection mode button or press A.

38 11 With Selection mode enabled, click the unwanted middle portion of the interview clip
you have just added the edit points to.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

12 Press Shift-Delete (Backspace) to ripple delete the portion between the In and
Out points.

13 Press / (slash) to preview the new edit.

Great. That’s tidied up that part of the timeline; now you’ll turn your attention to the first clip.

Trim Edit Mode

The Blade Edit mode isn’t the only mode you have in your timeline for helping you trim the
clips. For the next exercise, you’ll use the Trim Edit mode.
1 Press the Home key to move the playhead back to the beginning of the timeline.
2 Play through the first clip.
Obviously, there’s some unwanted portion of his interview we need to trim off at
the beginning.
3 Place your timeline playhead just before Brian says, “In this film…” (at about 01:00:03:00).
4 In the timeline toolbar, click the Trim Edit mode button or press T .
5 Click the beginning of the first clip and drag the edit to the right until it snaps to 39
your playhead.

Adding Music
TIP  If snapping isn’t enabled, just press N to quickly enable it during the
trimming operation.

6 Press A to return to Selection Edit mode.

Notice that because the audio and video of this clip are linked, you’re trimming both parts
of the clip together, and because you are in Trim Edit mode you’re automatically rippling the
timeline; all clips in the timeline on all Auto Select-enabled tracks after the selected edit are
rippled to maintain their sync’d relationships.

Adding Music
Now that you’ve started refining the timeline more, you’ll possibly want to add the music
and then build in the final pictures.
1 Move your playhead back to the beginning of the timeline.
2 Select the Audio bin and locate the clip Music Score for Trailer.
40 3 Drag this clip directly from the bin to the Place on Top overlay in the timeline viewer.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

Despite its name, in this case the Place on Top edit has actually added a new audio
track below your existing audio tracks. The Place on Top edit will actually place the
edited clip into the first available empty track in your timeline, working its way upward
through the video tracks or downward through the audio tracks. If it can’t find an empty
timeline track for the duration of the source clip, then a new track is created to
accommodate the new clip. Place on Top is useful for adding B-Roll to interviews or
titles as you will see later.

NOTE  Notice that when you added this stereo music clip to your timeline, it
automatically created a stereo audio track (denoted by the 2.0 in the track
header next to the track name).
When using audio clips to automatically create audio tracks as you have just
done, Resolve will automatically match the track type to the audio clip
you’re using.
To change an existing audio track to a different type (for instance stereo to
mono or vice versa), right-click the track header and choose
Change Track Type To.
 You’ll need to attenuate (lower) the level of the music clip; otherwise, you won’t hear 41
the interview audio.
4 Use the volume overlay line on the Music Score for Trailer audio clip to lower the clip’s

Adding Music
volume by about -18 dB.

5 Move your timeline playhead to the edit point between the last two interview clips.

6 From the Master bin, double click the clip AOA8 SOUTH POLE DC3 to open it in the
source viewer.
This clip is a video-only clip, so no audio destination controls are active.
42 7 Press F10 to overwrite the entire clip at the playhead position, overwriting the video of
Brian’s final interview clip in the process and neatly solving the problem of that jump
cut at the same time.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

8 From the B-Roll bin, select the clips AOA05 Bay Area Lights, AOA06 Milkyway,
and AOA07 KENYA.

9 Click and hold on any of these selected clips and drag across to the Append at End
overlay in the timeline viewer.
 The Append at End edit will use the end of the last clip on the targeted track as the 43
implied In point in the timeline, irrespective of where the timeline’s playhead is. It may
not seem like it, but this is still a three-point edit.

Shuffle Insert Edits

The three clips have been edited into the timeline sequentially based on their sort order in
the bin in the media pool. Unfortunately, they need rearranging slightly to make more
sense to the story you’re trying to convey.

Shuffle Insert Edits

To quickly change the order of these three clips in the timeline, you will use a Shuffle Insert
edit (or Swap Insert edit).
You will start by Shuffle Inserting the AOA07 Kenya clip backward.
1 Ensure that Snapping is enabled for your timeline.
2 Select AOA07 Kenya in the timeline.
3 Hold down Shift-Command (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl (Windows).
4 Drag AOA07 Kenya back so the start of the clip snaps to the edit point between
AOA08 South_Pole and AOA05 Bay Area Lights, and then release the mouse.

AOA07 Kenya is moved back, and the other clips in the timeline have been shuffled
out of the way (hence the name of this technique). The Shuffle Insert edit is a useful
option to have up your sleeve to quickly try out different clip arrangements in
the timeline.
You’ll need to repeat the last few steps to change the order of the final two clips in the
timeline: AOA05 Bay Area Lights and AOA06 Milkway.
5 In the timeline, select AOA05 Bay Area Lights .
44 6 Hold Shift-Command (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl (Windows).
7 Drag the clip to the end of AOA06 Milkway .
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

Excellent. Now that you have these clips in the correct order, it’s time to trim these clips so
the whole timeline is the correct duration.

Trimming to Duration
You now need to trim the extra pictures to bring your edit to the correct time.
1 Place your timeline playhead at the start of AOA08 South Pole DC3 and press the
Detail Zoom button.
2 Press T to enter Trim Edit mode.
3 Select the beginning of the AOA08 South Pole DC3 clip and begin to drag to the right
to trim the clip.

Whoa! Do you see what’s happening? You’re trimming the beginning of the clip
forward, but the interview audio is being rippled backward, overwriting the previous
audio clip in the process!
4 Press Command-Z (macOS) or Ctrl-Z (Windows) to undo the last step.
5 Click the Auto Track Selector for the Audio 1 track to deselect it.
6 Repeat the trim operation in Step 3 to trim the clip but not move the Interview audio. 45
Trim the clip so the gray duration tooltip reads 3:00 (3 secs).

Trimming to Duration
TIP  The upper white numbers in the trimming tooltip tell you by how much
time you have trimmed the selected edit, while the gray tooltip tells you the
new duration of the trimmed clip.

7 Press the Down Arrow key to move to the next edit at the start of the
07_KENYA.mov clip.

Track Lock or Auto Select?

In the previous step, you used the Auto Track Selector to remove a specific track from the
timeline operation. Why not just lock the track? The simple answer is, in this particular case,
you can. But you should think of the track lock as a single-use tool and the Auto Track Selector
as a Swiss Army knife that will help you accomplish so much more.

Up until now, Auto Track Selector has been your friend in this lesson, as it has ensured that any
clips in the timeline starting after the point you’re editing with all move together, in sync.
However, sometimes you need to change this, as in this case. Disabling Auto Track Selector for
the Audio 1 track means that any clips on that track after the selected edit will no longer be
included in the trim. In this example, the Auto Track Selector is functioning as a sync lock
control, but it does so much more than this, as you will discover throughout this book.
46 8 Trim the end of this shot until the clip is about 4 seconds long and focuses on the
reflection of the yellow plane in the water.
Another way to change the duration of clips and make them visually more interesting is
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

to adjust the speed at which the clip plays back.

9 Right-click the 06_MILKYWAY.mov clip and choose Change Clip Speed.

10 In the Change Clip Speed dialog box, type 225 in the Speed % box and select the
Ripple Sequence option.
 The 06_MILKYWAY.mov clip is sped up, and the trailing shot is rippled back in the 47
timeline with its change of duration.

Trimming to Duration
11 Play through the rest of the timeline until the final beat of the music.
12 Place the timeline playhead on the final beat of the music score (at 01:00:40:00).

13 In the Titles bin, double-click the 11_MOVIE_CREDITS.mov clip to open it in the

source viewer.
48 14 Press F10 to perform an Overwrite edit.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

15 Press Home and play your timeline to review your edit so far.

Adjusting Pacing
One final change you’ll make to this edit is to adjust the pacing of Brian’s interview slightly.
Many times, as an editor you will want to subtly introduce gaps between clips to provide
emphasis to an action, sound, or in this case, a line of dialogue.
1 Move your playhead to the start of the clip 08_SOUTH_POLE_DC3_.mov.
2 Play through Brian’s last audio clip and stop just after he says “…it didn’t make the
movie” and select the clip.

3 Press Command-B (macOS) or Ctrl-B (Windows) to add an edit to the selected clip at
the position of the playhead.
4 Select the second of the newly-cut clips in the timeline and drag it to the right until it
snaps to the beginning of 07_Kenya_.mov

Moving the clip forward a second or so in this manner has created a short space in
Brian’s interview that wasn’t there originally. This gives Brian’s thoughts room to
breathe and, together with the picture of the yellow plane’s reflection, an added
emphasis to the line about everything being “real.”
Excellent. You’ve built a fairly sophisticated trailer. However, there’s still a few things to do 49
before the director will be happy.

Finessing the Edit

Finessing the Edit
Before going much further, it’s always a good idea to periodically save a copy of the
timeline you’re currently working on.
1 In the Timelines bin, right-click the Age of Airplanes Trailer timeline you’re working on
and choose Duplicate Timeline.

A copy of your timeline appears in the same bin.

50
NOTE  You can now continue working on the currently loaded timeline,
knowing that you have a backup of your work to this point. Many editors often
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

like to rename the duplicated timeline, so they know what they are looking at
in the bin.

With a backup copy of your timeline in your bin, it’s now time to start finessing the edit
further. You’ll begin by adding some sound effects to the B-roll footage to give it more
of an impact.
2 Right-click anywhere in the timeline track headers and choose Add Tracks.

3 In the Add Tracks dialog box, change the number of video tracks to 0 and the number
of audio tracks to 2. Ensure that the Insert Position for the new audio tracks is set to
Below Audio 1 and set the Track Type to Stereo. Click Add Tracks.
 The additional audio tracks are added as specified. 51

Finessing the Edit

4 Position your timeline playhead anywhere over the second clip 01_A380_TAXI.mov
and press X.

In DaVinci Resolve, X does not mark the spot but rather marks the timeline clip under
the playhead on the lowest active auto selected track.

TIP  If you want to mark a selected clip or clips in the timeline, press Shift-A.

5 In the Audio bin, double-click SFX – jet taxi.wav to open it in the source viewer.
52 6 In the destination controls in the timeline, drag the red outlined A1 control to A2.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

This tells Resolve you want to edit the next clip into this track.
7 Press F10 to perform an Overwrite edit.

You have just completed a three-point edit, but this time you set the duration of the
edit by using In and Out points in the timeline. Because you hadn’t set any In or Out
points in the source, the implied In point was used—that is, from the start of the clip.
8 Move the timeline playhead over the clip 08_SOUTH_POLE_DC3_.mov and press X
to mark the clip.

9 Open SFX-Prop.wav in the source viewer from the Audio bin in the media pool.
10 With the source viewer playhead at the start of this clip, type +200 to move the 53
playhead forward by 2 seconds and press I to set an In point.

Finessing the Edit

11 Press F10 to perform an Overwrite edit.
This time, because you added an In point to the source clip, Resolve used this as the
start when editing the clip into the timeline.
12 Ensure that your playhead is over the next clip in the timeline, 07_KENYA.mov.
13 Press X to mark the clip.

14 In the Audio bin, open SFX – Distant prop plane.wav into the source viewer.
54 15 Set an In point roughly 3 seconds from the start of this clip.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

16 Click the A3 destination control in the timeline track controls to tell Resolve you want to
edit this on to a different track.
17 Press F10 to perform an Overwrite edit.
Backtiming Edits 55

Another editing technique that’s often used and builds on the concept of the three-point

Finessing the Edit

edit is the backtimed edit. Backtiming an edit means you specify where you want a shot to
end by just adding an Out point rather than an In point.
1 Place your timeline playhead over the third clip 02_A380_TAKEOFF.mov and press X
to mark the clip.

2 In the Audio bin, open the SFX – Jet take off.wav clip into the source viewer.
3 Play through the clip until the sound of the jet starts to fade away (around 01:00:19:00).
4 Press O to add an Out point.

NOTE  For backtimed edits to work, you only need an Out point. If necessary,
you can remove an In point by pressing Option-I (macOS) or Alt-I (Windows).
56 5 Press F10 to make an Overwrite edit.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

This time the Out point you set in the source viewer has specified where the new clip
should stop. Pretty neat, huh?

Using Replace Edits

Another technique you can use to your advantage very effectively is the Replace edit. The
Replace edit is slightly different from the three-point edits you’ve been using throughout
this lesson in that you’re not required to set any In or Out points. Instead, the Replace edit
uses the position of the timeline and source playheads to align the edits.
1 Move the timeline playhead over the clip 10_MALDIVES.mov just before you see the
wings come into shot.
2 Open the clip SFX – Overhead.wav in the Audio bin. 57

Finessing the Edit

This is a simple sound effect file with a prominent waveform.
3 In the source viewer, position the playhead over the highest point of the waveform.

4 In the timeline, click the destination control to A2.

5 Click the Replace Clip button or press F11.

58 6 Press / (slash) to preview the edit.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

Quite effective, isn’t it? You’ll use a Replace edit again, in combination with a feature called
Match Frame, in the next exercise.

Match Frame
Sometimes, rather than searching through bins to find a clip you want to use, it’s easier to
use a portion from a clip that’s already in the timeline. This is a technique called a Match
Frame, as it brings up the source clip for a clip you’ve already edited.
1 In the timeline, place your playhead over the last frame of 07_KENYA.mov and
select the clip.
2 In the bottom right of the timeline viewer, click the Match Frame button or press F. 59

The original source clip 07_KENYA.mov automatically opens in the source viewer with
the playhead on the same frame and In and Out points as the clip in the timeline.

Finessing the Edit

3 In the source viewer, move the playhead toward the end of the clip where you can see
the yellow plane flying over the flamingoes.
60 4 Press F11 to perform a Replace edit.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

TIP  You can also use the Match Frame button in the bottom right of the
source viewer. This will move the timeline playhead to the same frame (if it’s
used). This technique is often referred to as a Reverse Match Frame.

Using the combination of Match Frame and Replace edit means it’s quick and easy to use
different parts of the same shots in the timeline without having to worry about setting
different In and Out points.

Audio Mixing
Now that you’ve got some sound effects in your edit, the whole timeline seems to come
alive and just goes to show the importance of sound. You’ll work with audio much more
throughout later lessons; however, even at this stage it’s likely that you’ll need to take on
some basic audio duties, at the very least so the director gets a sense of what the edit will
eventually sound like.
1 Press A to ensure you’re working in Selection mode and then select all the interview
clips on the Audio 1 track.
2 Click the Inspector button in the upper-right corner of the interface to open the 61
Audio Inspector.

Audio Mixing
3 Drag the Clip Volume slider to raise the level of all these clips by about 6 dB.
62 That sorts out the main levels for Brian’s dialogue clips, but there’s a bit of a spike at
the beginning of the first clip.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

4 Place your playhead at the first clip in the timeline and click the Detail Zoom button.
5 Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) the volume curve line to add a keyframe
after the spike. Repeat to add a second keyframe just after the first.

6 Lower the part of the audio curve before the first keyframe so the peak is about the
same height as the other peaks in the clip.

7 Click the Full Extent Zoom button see the whole timeline.
 63
Displaying the Audio Meters
You can see your audio levels in the Edit page by clicking the Mixer button in the upper-right

Audio Mixing
corner of the interface. You can then choose to show just the meters by clicking in the Mixer’s
Options menu (the button with three dots) and choosing Meters. Doing so displays the
combined levels for the timeline’s currently selected main bus. You’ll learn more about setting
mains and other buses in the audio mixing lesson.

Mixing the Sound Effects

Now it’s time to turn your attention to the sound effects that you added earlier. First, you’ll
want to adjust the levels and then apply fades to the beginnings and ends of each clip.
Fortunately, DaVinci Resolve has a quick way to bypass such repetitive tasks.
1 Adjust the level of the first audio clip on the Audio 2 track, the SFX – Jet Taxi.wav clip,
by about -8 dB.

2 Use the fade controls at the head and tail of the clip to apply a short fade in and out
to the clip.

3 Select the clip in the timeline and choose Edit > Copy or press Command-C (macOS) or
Ctrl-C (Windows).
64 4 Select all the other audio clips on the Audio 2 and Audio 3 tracks.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

5 Choose Edit > Paste Attributes or Press Option-V (macOS) or Alt-V (Windows).

6 In the Paste Attributes dialog box, select the box for Volume in the Audio Attributes,
and click Apply.
The Paste Attributes command pastes the volume settings, including the fade handles, to 65
each of the selected clips. You may still want to go through the clips yourself later to check
that they are the right level, but this is a great timesaver.

Adding Transitions
Adding Transitions
You should always add transitions to your projects with great care. Transitions must be
inserted with a consideration of the story you are telling and not used if they detract from
that story. As a wise man once said, “With great power comes great responsibility.”
That said, transitions are a good way to show a change of location or time that might be
a bit too abrupt for your audience if left with just a straight cut.
1 Select the edit point between 02_A380_TAKEOFF.mov and 10_MALDIVES.mov.

2 Press Command-T (macOS) or Ctrl-T (Windows) to add the default cross dissolve transition.

3 Press / (slash) to preview the transition.

66 4 Select the transition in the timeline, and in the Inspector, change the Video Transition
Style to Edge Wipe, change the Angle to about -80, and change the Duration to 12 frames.
5 Check the Feather box and increase the border to around 100.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

6 Finally, press / (slash) to preview the transition and channel your inner George Lucas.

NOTE  You can access more transition presets by clicking the Effects Library
button from the upper-left corner of the interface and selecting the Video
Transitions category.
Problems Applying Transitions 67

Occasionally you may have a problem applying transitions, but it’s good to know that you

Adding Transitions
can use Resolve’s flexible Trim Edit mode to help overcome these.
1 Select the edit point between 08_SOUTH_POLE_DC3_.mov and 07_KENYA.mov.

Notice the red bars on one side of the selected edit? This tells you that there are no
handles or available media on the south pole shot.
2 Press Command-T (macOS) or Ctrl-T (Windows) to apply a cross dissolve transition.

The above dialog appears, warning you that there are insufficient handles. As trimming
clips to create the handles will shorten your timeline, this probably isn’t something you
want to happen. Instead, you’ll fix this issue using a slip trim.
3 Click Cancel.
4 Press T to enter Trim Edit mode.
5 In the timeline, zoom in on clip 08_SOUTH_POLE.mov so you can see the clip
comfortably.
6 Move your mouse cursor over the upper part of the clip (not the name bar). It will
automatically become the slip trim icon.
68 7 Click and drag the clip to the right by about 1 second to slip the footage within the clip.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

8 Reselect the edit point between 08_SOUTH_POLE.mov and 07_KENYA.mov and

press Command-T (macOS) or Ctrl-T (Windows) to apply the cross dissolve.

9 Press A to return to the Selection mode.

Adding Fusion Titles

The last step for this edit is to add a title so everyone knows who Brian is. DaVinci Resolve
comes bundled with a series of templates that have been created for your use in the Fusion
page. That doesn’t mean you must be a compositing expert to use them, but it does mean
that you can customize them further in DaVinci Resolve’s Fusion page without needing any
additional software.
1 Click the Full Extent Zoom button and move your playhead to the beginning of
the timeline.
2 Click the Effects Library button in the top-left corner of the edit page to open the
Effects Library.
3 In the Effects Library, select the Titles category. 69

Adding Fusion Titles

The Titles category lists all the available standard title generators and new Fusion
title templates.

TIP  Place your mouse pointer over any of the title generators (you don’t
need to click to select the individual titles), and then move your mouse pointer
forward and backward over the length of the template. A live preview of the
template, including any animation, is displayed in the timeline viewer.

4 From the list of Fusion titles, select the template called Simple Underline Lower Third.
70 5 Drag the title to the timeline viewer overlays and choose Place on Top.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

The Fusion title gets placed above the first video clip on a new track.
6 Place your timeline playhead over the center of the title clip. 71

The controls for this title automatically appear in the Inspector.

Adding Fusion Titles

These controls allow you to adjust the main characteristics of the text within this
Fusion title.
7 In the Main text box, highlight the “SAMPLE TITLE” text and type BRIAN J. TERWILLIGER.
8 Scroll down to the bottom of the Inspector to the Line Controls section.
9 Change the color of the line from light blue to your preferred shade of yellow.
72
TIP  To reset any Fusion title parameters to their defaults, click on the small gray
dot that appears below the slider once you make a change to the parameter.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

10 Finally, in the timeline, trim the end of the title to the end of the first clip on Video 1.
Allow the title to cache and play back.

Continue Cutting
Congratulations! You should now have a more rounded understanding of the basic editing
toolset within DaVinci Resolve. However, before you move to the next lesson you might
want to put your new skills to the test, as there are still a few things you can do to finesse
this edit. Try to accomplish these tasks on your own. Don’t forget to duplicate your timeline
to create a backup version before you make any major changes! Good luck!
1 Trim each of the sound effect clips on Audio 2 and Audio 3 so that there’s more
overlap as one sound effect fades out and the other fades in.
2 Add keyframes to the music score clip on Audio 4 so that the volume rises after Brian’s
last line.
3 Add additional Fusion titles for each airplane clip to highlight the many different
locations (Maldives, South Pole, Kenya) featured in this film.

Reviewing the Finished Timeline

If you wish to view a finished version of this edit, created using the steps detailed in this lesson,
select your Timelines bin and choose File > Import Timeline > Import AAF, XML, DRT, ADL, and
navigate to R17 Editing Lessons / Finished Timelines / Age of Airplanes Trailer Finished.drt and
click Open.
Lesson Review 73

1 What element is most often used to organize imported clips in DaVinci Resolve?

Lesson Review
a) Timelines
b) Thumbnails
c) Bins
2 What types of edits can you perform using the toolbar buttons above the timeline?
a) Overwrite
b) Insert
c) Append at End
3 True or False? DaVinci Resolve allows you to manually add only one video or audio
track at a time.
4 True or False? You can change only the type of transition applied to an edit by
accessing the various transitions from the Effects Library.
5 True or False? Any changes you need to make to a Fusion title template must be made
directly in the Fusion page.
74
Answers
1 Bins are most commonly used to organize imported clips in DaVinci Resolve.
Lesson 1  Editing in the Edit Page

2 a) and b) The toolbar has buttons for performing Overwrite, Insert, and Replace edits.
Append at End edits can be performed using the timeline viewer overlays, the Edit >
Append at End of Timeline menu option, or by pressing Shift-F12.
3 False. You can add as many video and audio tracks as you require by choosing the
Add Tracks option after right-clicking in the timeline track headers.
4 False. Transitions can be changed in the Inspector as well as from the Effects Library.
5 False. Many changes can be made directly in the Fusion Inspector on the Edit or
Cut pages.
Lesson 2

Edit Preparation and

Organization
While DaVinci Resolve is a superior editing, Time
audio mixing, visual effects, and color grading This lesson takes approximately
60 minutes to complete.
system, it can also play a key role on set
before a single edit is made. In this lesson, Goals
you’ll focus on some of the incredibly powerful Backing Up Source Files 76
yet lesser-known, and often overlooked,
Syncing Audio to Video 85
Resolve functions that will help during
Modifying Clip Audio Channels 91
production as you organize and optimize
high-resolution, camera-original media and Configuring Metadata Presets 96

generally prepare everything for your edit. Importing Metadata 101

Renaming Clips with Metadata 104
Searching Using Metadata 108
Using Automatic Smart Bins 110
Smart Bins for People 113
Creating Custom Smart Bins 119
Power Bins 123
Creating Proxy Files for Editing 124
Saving Project Presets 132
Lesson Review 135
76
Backing Up Source Files
The most important assets of any project are the camera-original media files. These are
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

often irreplaceable and, if corrupted in any way, the alternatives can be painful. At worse it
could require the expense of a complete reshoot! So, it makes sense that the very first
thing you must do when handed media files for editing is to back up that original media.
You’ll use this empty project to use DaVinci Resolve’s built-in tools to back up content from
a disk image file that you’ll use to simulate the plugging in of a drive containing new media.
However, you could just as easily use a C-Fast or SD card from a camera or any other data
storage device such as a USB drive.

NOTE  To complete the next few steps in this exercise, you will need
approximately 2.5 GB of available storage on your system.

1 Open DaVinci Resolve and, in the Project Manager, create a new project. Name your
project R17 Editing Lesson 02.
2 At the bottom of the interface, click the Media page button or press Shift-2. 77

Backing Up Source Files

The media page is the most efficient page for importing and organizing media, syncing
clips, and adding metadata. It is also where you can back up camera-original media
using the Clone tool.

3 Click the Clone Tool button in the upper left of the toolbar.

A new window opens between the Media Storage browser and the viewer that you
can use to create a backup of media cards, folders, or even an entire drive of content.
78 4 At the bottom of the Clone tool panel, click the Add Job button.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

Job 1 appears at the top of the Clone tool.

Each item (most often a directory of locally attached hard drives) that you want to
clone or back up is considered a job. You can add as many jobs as you like and then
create clones of all their contents all at once. You add content by dragging a folder,
a disk image, or camera card content from the Media Storage browser into the Clone
tool panel.
5 Open a new Finder window (macOS) or Explorer window (Windows) and navigate to 79
R16 Editing Lessons > Lesson 02 Media. Double-click the R17_Editing_Lesson02.iso
file to open it.

Backing Up Source Files

TIP  This ISO file is a disk image that will appear on your system as a virtual
hard drive. It is being used in this lesson in lieu of a compact flash card, or
other camera storage media.

6 Return to DaVinci Resolve.

In the list of media storage locations, a new source called Lesson 02 Media is now
available.

You have just simulated plugging in an external source, such as a hard drive or
camera media card.
80 7 Drag Lesson 02 Media from the Media Storage to the Clone tool’s Job 1 source.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

Each job can have only a single source for the cloned media; however, you can add
multiple destinations to create multiple backups from that source.
8 Right-click in an empty space in the Media Storage Locations and choose Add
New Location.

9 In the window that appears, navigate to the R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 02 Media
folder, select the Backup Destination folder, and click Open.
 The Backup Destination folder is added to the list of Media Storage Locations. 81

Backing Up Source Files

10 Drag the Backup Destination location from the Media Storage Location to the Clone
tool’s Job 1 destination area.

TIP  You can also right-click a folder in any media storage location and choose
“Set as Clone Source” or “Add as Clone Destination.”

11 In the upper-right corner of the Clone tool panel, click the Options menu and choose
Checksum Type > MD5.

A checksum is a way of verifying the integrity of a copied file. Several checksum

methods are available, but MD5 checksum has become the industry standard, and
studios that require checksums with media offload on set will typically require it.
12 Click the Clone button at the bottom of the Clone tool panel to begin the backup.
82 The cloning process begins. During this time, you can continue using Resolve.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

13 When the copy is complete, a green Complete label appears above the job in the
Clone tool.

14 In your operating system’s interface, navigate to the R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 02

Media/Backup Destination folder.
 In addition to containing the entire contents of the disk image, the backup destination 83
includes an MD5 checksum text document, together with a .mhl (media hash list) file,
both of which report the result of the checksum verification.

Backing Up Source Files

NOTE  The checksums generated in these documents are for the source
media files. If required, checksums can then be generated for the destination
media files and compared to these original values to ensure the integrity of
the copied media.

15 Return to Resolve, and in the toolbar, click the Clone Tool button to close the panel.
16 In the Media Storage Locations, right-click the Lesson 02 Media location and choose
Unmount Drive to unmount the drive from your system, thereby allowing it to be
removed safely.

NOTE  For Windows users, if the disk image does not unmount using the
above method, you can always right-click the mounted disk image and
choose Eject.
84 Now that you have the media files safely copied to your editing system, it’s time to
import them into your project and begin the process of sifting through and organizing
the media prior to editing.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

17 Select the Backup Destination location in your Media Storage Locations.

This was the destination location you set in the Clone tool when copying the disk
image in the previous exercise.
18 In the Media Storage Browser, select all three folders. Right-click any of the folders and
choose Add Folder and Subfolders into Media Pool (Create Bins).

The media files are imported into your project and added to the media pool, with the
folder structure used to organize the original source files being replicated as a
series of bins.
19 Click the Media Storage button to hide the media storage panel.
Cloning your camera-original content is so essential that it is worth putting DaVinci Resolve
on set, so rushes can be backed up during the shoot. In so doing, you can clone and check
the media before the set is struck and any talent or crew leaves the location; that way, if
something is wrong, you will know to reshoot right away with the least impact on schedules
and budgets.
Syncing Audio to Video 85

Now that you’ve imported the dailies into your project, you can begin organizing the media

Syncing Audio to Video

by syncing any audio and video clips that were recorded on separate devices. Some
productions record audio on dedicated digital audio devices to capture the highest quality
audio or when it’s not practical or desirable to record audio directly to a camera. Thus,
when the files come in from the day’s shoot, you’ll need to sync the appropriate audio
and video clips—a process often referred to as “syncing the dailies.”

Auto Sync Using Waveforms

In many cases, you can let DaVinci Resolve automatically sync these separate files using
matching timecodes from both clips or by comparing camera-recorded audio with the
separate audio clips. In some instances, though, you may not be so lucky, and you’ll need
to manually sync your clips.
1 In the bin list, click the Video Clips bin, and then Command-click (macOS) or Ctrl-click
(Windows) the Audio Clips bin to display the contents of both bins in the media pool.

2 In the media pool, switch to list view and click the Clip Name column header to sort the
bin in ascending order of clip name. (The arrow will point up.)

TIP  If you prefer to work in thumbnail view, you may find it easier to achieve
the following steps by turning off Live Media Preview from the viewer’s
Options menu.
86 3 Select CLIP0001.mov.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

4 Play through the interview with Sasha in the viewer.

This clip has poor audio, possibly because it was recorded using the on-camera
microphone.
5 Select Audio0001.wav and play through this clip in the viewer.

This clip contains the correct audio for Sasha’s interview.

6 In the media pool, select CLIP0001.mov and Audio0001.wav, right-click either file and 87
choose Auto-sync Audio > Based on Waveform.

Syncing Audio to Video

7 From the recent clips pop-up menu at the top of the viewer, choose CLIP0001.mov
and play it to hear the newly synchronized picture and sound.

Resolve automatically matches the waveforms of the two pieces of audio to correctly
sync the production audio with the video clip.

NOTE  This process does not delete the original audio from the clip. Instead, it
adds the additional audio as linked channels. To verify this, right-click the clip,
choose Clip Attributes, and select the Audio tab, where you can switch between
the linked and embedded audio channels or add various configurations of both
(see “Modifying Clip Audio Channels” below).
When performing the auto sync, you choose the options that include Append
Tracks if you wish to work with the embedded audio and the linked audio together.
88 If you have many clips to sync in this manner, you can select multiple audio and video clips,
right-click one of them, and choose Auto-sync Audio > Based on Waveform to let Resolve
work its magic and sync them all automatically!
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

Manually Syncing Audio and Video

The previous example worked well, but sometimes automatic operations don’t work so
smoothly, or cannot be used at all for a variety of practical or production reasons.
1 Select clip CLIP0002.mov to open it in the viewer and play through the clip.

Oh no! Because no audio was recorded with this clip, you have no audio waveform
with which to auto-sync the clip.
2 In the Audio panel, click the Waveform tab to prepare to display the audio waveform of
a selected clip.
3 In the media pool, select Audio0002.wav. The waveform viewer updates to show the 89
audio waveform of this clip, while the viewer still displays the video clip.

Syncing Audio to Video

To manually sync these two clips, you need to position the playheads for the video clip
and the audio clip where you think the clips align. Normally this would be where you
would use a clapboard or digital slate, but this clip does not contain either of those
options. In this case, you’ll have to revert to Plan B and manually find a sync point.
4 In the viewer, drag the jog bar through the clip until you see Sasha clap his hands.
Press the Left and Right Arrow keys to position the playhead on the exact frame where
his hands are together.
90 5 In the Audio panel, drag the jog bar until you see the first waveform peak that indicates
the hand clap.
6 Press the Left and Right Arrow keys to position the audio panel playhead on the audio
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

peak of the hand clap.

TIP  Audio scrubbing is a useful feature when trying to identify a particular

location on an audio clip. Choose Timeline > Audio Scrubbing or press Shift-S
to toggle it on and off.

7 At the bottom of the Audio panel, click the Link/Unlink Audio button, choose Clip > Link
Clips or press Option-Command-L (macOS) or Alt-Ctrl-L (Windows).

The transport controls beneath the audio window disappear, and the clips are
now linked.
8 Move the playhead to the beginning of CLIP0002.mov and click Play to verify that the 91
picture and sound are in sync.

Modifying Clip Audio Channels

TIP  If you’re not entirely happy with your results, clicking the Link/Unlink Audio
button again (or choosing Clip > Link Clips) will unlink the clips and allow you to
change the playhead locations as required in order to readjust the sync relationship
before linking the clips together again.

While it is much easier to use Resolve’s auto sync feature to sync clips based on their
timecodes or audio waveforms, being able to manually sync clips is also useful if the audio
has a transient audio signal that you can locate visually in the video. That’s why most
dual-system setups use clapperboards to help in this process.

Modifying Clip Audio Channels

The next step in your edit prep process is to ensure that the audio in the project is
configured correctly. You can do that in the Clip Attributes window.
1 With the Audio Clips and Videos Clips bins still selected, and the media pool in list
view, Click the Audio Ch column header to organize the clips by the number of audio
channels available.

2 In the media pool, click the CLIP0003.mov clip to select it.

3 Shift-click CLIP0012.mov to also select it and all the video clips in between.

You have selected all the clips that have two audio channels.
92 4 Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Clip Attributes.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

The Clip Attributes window allows you to configure various aspects of how clips are
displayed, played, and heard.
5 Click the Audio tab.
 In the Audio tab, you may change the number of tracks used when editing the clip into 93
the timeline, the configuration of the individual channels within those tracks, and
whether those channels are used or muted. In this case, these clips’ audio channels

Modifying Clip Audio Channels

have been automatically configured as single stereo tracks. However, because this
audio was recorded in-camera, and audio is rarely recorded as stereo on location, it
makes sense to reconfigure these two channels as two mono tracks.

NOTE  You can individually configure multiple tracks with different

configurations for each clip, depending on the audio formats supplied to you
and how clips will be used throughout the edit.

6 In the Format column pop-up menu, choose Mono to reconfigure the current audio
track as mono.
94 The Source Channel is set to Embedded Channel 1.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

7 In the uppermost Format pop-up menu, choose Mono. Click Add to insert another
mono track.
8 Change the Source Channel for this new Audio 2 track to Embedded Channel 2. 95

Modifying Clip Audio Channels

9 Click OK to save the setting and close the window.
These clips are all now correctly configured with two tracks of mono audio. However,
you won’t see much difference in these clips until you edit them into a timeline.

TIP  To remove an audio track and its configuration from any clip, move your
mouse pointer over the track and click the trash can icon that appears to the right.
This will not delete the audio, just the selected track.
96 Clip attributes encompass several useful configuration features and, ideally, you’ll want to
configure most of them before you edit a clip into a timeline. Once clips are placed into a
timeline, any changes you make to a clip’s attributes in the media pool will only affect new
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

instances of that clip added to a timeline. Existing instances of the clip in any timeline will
remain unchanged, using the settings from clip attributes in place at the time the edit was
made. You can adjust these existing clips within the timeline by right-clicking the clip and
choosing Clip Attributes from the contextual menu.

Configuring Metadata Presets

Metadata has quickly become an important part of the editing process. However, as useful
as metadata is, it can quickly become overwhelming. Resolve has several metadata
categories you can use to reduce the amount of metadata displayed at any one time to a
manageable subset of the whole. However, you can customize metadata presets to display
only the information you most need or want to see.
1 Choose DaVinci Resolve > Preferences, or press Command-, (comma) in macOS or
Ctrl-, (comma) in Windows.
2 In the Preferences window, click the User tab and select the Metadata category
to the left.
 In the Metadata presets pane, you can create, modify, and delete custom 97
metadata presets.

Configuring Metadata Presets

3 Click the New button to create a new metadata preset, and name it
My Favorite Metadata. Click OK.
In the lower-half of the Metadata pane, under Metadata Options, you’ll see all the
metadata you can add to the preset.
98 4 Select the checkboxes for Description, Keywords, Scene, and Shot.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

5 At the upper right of the Metadata options, click Save to save your changes to
the preset.
6 Click Save at the bottom of the Preferences window to save and close the 99
Preferences panel.

Configuring Metadata Presets

7 In the media pool, select one or more clips, and if necessary, click the Metadata button
to open the Metadata panel to the right of the interface.
8 Click the Metadata panel options menu and choose the new My Favorite
Metadata preset.
100 9 Click the Sort menu and choose All Groups.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

TIP  Your preset will appear blank in the Metadata Editor unless it is set to
show all groups or a subset that contains the fields of your preset.

Using this preset, fields for the four selected metadata items appear in the
Metadata Editor.

Currently, the fields are empty for all the clips in the media pool; you could enter this
information manually, or if the information exists outside of DaVinci Resolve, you
could import it.
Importing Metadata 101

You have many ways to populate your clips with useful metadata. It may be entered on the

Importing Metadata
camera during production (although detailed metadata is rarely a priority for the camera
operator or an assistant); you can enter it manually yourself, which very few people want
(or have the time) to do; or someone on set can be assigned to be responsible for entering
metadata in their favorite spreadsheet program or in any of the smart slate apps that can be
used to log metadata such as shot, scene take, and more. You can then import this data
into Resolve using the simple CSV (comma separated value) format and save yourself
hours of work in the cutting room!
1 Choose File > Import Metadata To > Media Pool.

2 In the File dialog, navigate to R17 Editing Lessons > Lesson 02 Media. Select
CC-metadata.csv.
This .csv file was generated from a simple spreadsheet program.
102 3 Click Open.
The Metadata Import dialog opens. This window allows you to choose how you want
Resolve to match the clips with additional metadata. In this case, you can match clips
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

based on their filenames but not timecodes, as this information is not included in the .
csv file you are importing.

4 Deselect the “Match using clip start and end Timecode” checkbox as the .csv file does
not contain this information.

5 Click OK to import the metadata from the .csv file.

 A confirmation window appears stating that the information within the .csv file has 103
been imported and added to the clips based on matching filenames.

Importing Metadata
NOTE  Importing metadata in this manner will replace any existing metadata in
the fields detailed in the .csv file. Metadata fields not listed in the .csv file will
remain unchanged. This behavior can be changed based on the Merge
Options section of the Metadata Import window.

6 Verify that the information from the .csv file has been added to the media pool clips by
selecting a few clips and viewing their newly added metadata in the Metadata panel.

Your clips now include scene, shot, description, and keyword information. This metadata
will help as you organize and rename the clips to something more useful than the cryptic
filenames given to them by the camera.
104
Exporting Metadata and Bins
As well as being able to import metadata to clips in your media pool, as detailed in the above
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

steps, you can also choose to export the metadata from your media pool or from selected clips
from the media pool. To do so, simply select File > Export Metadata From > Media Pool, or File >
Export Metadata From > Selected Media Pool Clips (as appropriate). Your chosen clip metadata
will then be exported as a .csv file and provides a way of easily transferring metadata from one
project to another that uses the same media, even if that project is on another Resolve system.

A new option in DaVinci Resolve 17 now allows you to export an entire bin by choosing File >
Export > Export Bin. This command will export the clip metadata (not the media) from the
currently selected bin to a .drb file. As with exported metadata, you can use this option to
transfer bins between different Resolve projects or systems by choosing File > Import >
Import Bin.

Any clips listed in the .drb file will be automatically imported into the current project, together
with their associated metadata. If the source media is in the same location as the system the
bin was exported from, it will be automatically linked to the newly imported clip. But if the
media is in a different location, you will have to manually relink.

Renaming Clips with Metadata

Clip names from a camera, or almost any capture device, are often an alphanumeric string
that typically includes the date and time that the clip was created. They are not always the
most descriptive names and often need to be changed for editing purposes. Entering clip
names manually is one way to address this, but it is not the only way (or even the most
efficient way) to rename them.
Variables are references to other metadata that exist on the clip such as scene, take, and
shot number—so called because variables are not the same for each clip. You can enter a
variable into the clip name, and Resolve will reference the correct information for each clip
(provided the information is present). You will use the metadata you’ve just imported to
change the generic names of the clips in your Video Clips bin to more descriptive names.
1 Select the Video Clips bin and press Command-A (macOS) or Ctrl-A (Windows) to
select all the video clips in the bin.
2 Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Clip Attributes.
3 In the Clip Attributes window, select the Name tab. 105

Renaming Clips with Metadata

4 Highlight the text in the Clip Name field, type % (percentage sign).
Entering % indicates that you are about to enter a variable. When you enter that %,
a list of variables appears.
106 5 Type key. A list of potential variables appears that contain the letters “key.”
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

6 In the pop-up menu, click Keywords to add it to the Clip Name field.

7 Press the Spacebar to add a space after this variable. Type %des and choose
Description from the list of variables.
 You can combine text that you enter with preset variables to create a more descriptive 107
clip name. For instance, you can type a space to separate each variable and add the
word “shot” before each shot number.

Renaming Clips with Metadata

8 Enter a space after the description variable, type shot, and enter another space.
9 Type %shot to display all the variables containing “shot” and in the pop-up menu,
choose Shot to add it into the Clip Name field.

10 Click OK to apply the changes you’ve just made.

The clip names now show a combination of the keywords, descriptions, and shot
numbers for each clip, information that is pulled from the clips’ various metadata fields.
108
NOTE  Changing the clip names in this way does not change the names of the
original media files. Clip names are often used by editors within a project to
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

provide a more user-friendly way of identifying a clip or series of clips. If you

wish to see the original filename instead of the clip name, choose View > Show
File Names. EDLs, XMLs, or AAFs generated from within Resolve will always
reference the original filename.

Importing metadata and using it to rename clips with variables can save hours of manual
typing and provide clear, descriptive information that you can match with other documents
in a production like camera logs and script notes.

Searching Using Metadata

You also can use metadata to find clips quickly and easily. Being able to find the material
you want or need as rapidly as possible means you can more effectively focus on the story
and the flow of your edit.
1 Select the Video Clips bin.
2 At the top of the media pool, click the Search button (the magnifying glass) to reveal
the search field.

By default, the search criteria for the selected bin is set to only search across clips’
filenames.
3 In the “Filter by” pop-up menu to the right of the Search field, choose All Fields.
 Resolve will now search across all the available metadata fields. 109

4 In the search bar, type ext to display all the shots that have EXT as some part of their
metadata (in this case, EXT in the keywords indicating an exterior shot).

Searching Using Metadata

5 In the search bar, highlight ext, and type Sasha to reveal the two shots that include
Sasha in their Description fields.
6 Clear the search bar by clicking the x to the right to return to the full list of media in
the Video Clips bin.

TIP  Use the drop-down menu next to the Search button to specify whether you
want to search the currently selected bins or all the bins within the project.

Resolve’s powerful and responsive search feature lets you leverage the flexibility of
metadata to easily find media pool clips in even the largest project.
110
Using Automatic Smart Bins
Another advantage of adding metadata to your clips is that you can use it to create Smart
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

Bins. Keywords, scene, and shot metadata can be used to automatically create a series of
Smart Bins.
1 In the Smart Bins area of the media pool, click the disclosure arrow for the Keywords
Smart Bin folder to view the list of Smart Bins.

These Smart Bins were automatically created based on the keywords currently applied
to each clip in this project. If you adjust the Keyword metadata of any clips within this
project, this list of Smart Bins will update accordingly.
2 Select the INT Smart Bin. Notice that this Smart Bin contains two clips that contain the
INT keyword.
3 Select the Store Smart Bin. 111

Using Automatic Smart Bins

This Smart Bin contains a total of five clips, two of which are the same two clips as the
INT Smart Bin.
4 In the main menu, choose DaVinci Resolve > Preferences, click the User tab, and then
click the Editing category on the left side of the window.

The editing preferences allow you to display other automatic Smart Bins beyond
Keywords.
112 5 Select the Automatic Smart Bin for Scene Metadata checkbox, and then click Save to
save the change and close the Preferences window.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

A Scene folder appears in the Smart Bins list with three Smart Bins containing clips
with the appropriate scene metadata.
Smart Bins for People 113

Smart Bins for People

NOTE  Smart Bins for People Metadata is available only in DaVinci Resolve Studio.
If you are using the free version of DaVinci Resolve, you may read over the exercise,
but you will not be able to perform the steps. You can begin following the steps
with next section titled “Creating Custom Smart Bins.”

Now that you have Smart Bins for keywords and scenes, you may also want to find clips
that contain shots of certain people, whether this is an actor, interviewee, or presenter. The
DaVinci Resolve Neural Engine can detect human faces in a shot and recognize that same
face when it appears in other shots.
To find people in clips, you begin by analyzing the clips in a bin.
1 Select the Video Clips bin and press Command-A (macOS) or Ctrl-A (Windows) to
select all the video clips in the bin.
2 Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Analyze Clips for People.

The neural engine immediately begins analyzing each clip, looking for faces and then
trying to identify whether the same face appears across multiple clips.
114 When the analysis is complete, the People window displays the results of the analysis.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

The sidebar to the left shows groups of faces created based on the analysis. The
uppermost People bin displays each unique face. You can name each face Resolve
has identified to add that information to the clip’s People metadata.

NOTE  You can use the Improve People Grouping Result to help the
DaVinci Resolve Neural Engine provide better results by visually confirming
whether the same face appears in different clips.

3 Underneath the first thumbnail, click once, pause briefly, and then click again to edit
the name. Type Sasha as this person’s name.
 In the People bin, individual bins collect all the clips with a recognized individual. 115
Naming the bin has created a Sasha bin.

Smart Bins for People

4 In the sidebar, select the Sasha bin to display all the clips in which Sasha is recognized.

NOTE  If incorrect clips have been added to People bins, right-clicking that
clip will display options for correcting any issues, such as changing the
identified face or removing the face completely.

5 In the sidebar, select the Person 2 bin to display the image on the T-shirt as a detected
face. (Yes, the Neural Engine is that good!)
116 6 Right-click the clip in the bin and choose Not Person 2 > New Person.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

TIP  You can also use the Remove option to move a detected face to the
Other People bin.

7 Name this face T-Shirt and click OK to update Person 2 with the new name.

The Other bin collects clips in which faces were detected but not recognized as
belonging to an identified person. You can use this bin to correctly identify these clips
with the appropriate name.
8 Select the Other bin. 117

Smart Bins for People

9 Select all the clips that include Sasha in the shot, and then right-click either of the
selected clips and choose Tag as > Sasha.

The unrecognized faces are now tagged as Sasha.

118
NOTE  You may think that many of these clips have already been tagged as
Sasha in the previous step. However, these are faces the Neural Engine may
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

believe to be different faces, even though they are in the same clip. This is
useful, as it means the same clip can be tagged with different faces when
more than one person is in the shot.

10 In the lower right of the window, click the Close button to confirm all your changes.
The names of each recognized person are added to the People category in the
appropriate clip metadata. However, a more convenient option is to enable the display
of People Smart Bins.

11 Choose DaVinci Resolve > Preferences, or press Command-, (comma) on macOS or

Ctrl-, (comma) on Windows, and then select the User tab.
12 In the Editing category, select the checkbox for Automatic Smart Bins for People
metadata.
13 Click OK to save the change and close the Preferences window. 119

A new People Smart Bin folder appears between the Keyword and Scene Smart
Bin folders.

Creating Custom Smart Bins

14 Click the disclosure arrow for People to display the Sasha Smart Bin.

All the clips that contain a recognizable face of Sasha now appear in a single Smart Bin.
If you need to modify a People Smart Bin, you can reopen the People window at any time
by choosing Workspace > People.

TIP  You can reset all faces by clicking the People window’s Option menu and
choosing Reset Face Database.

Creating Custom Smart Bins

Using the various automatic Smart Bins options is a great way to help add order to your
projects, but the true power of Smart Bins comes to the fore when you can set your own
rules for what a Smart Bin will contain.
In this exercise, you will create your own Smart Bins to be able to find and work with certain
media from this project.
1 In the Smart Bins area of the media pool, right-click and choose Add Smart Bin.

The Create Smart Bin window appears.

120 2 Name this Smart Bin B-Roll.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

3 Click the second pop-up menu (currently File Name) and choose Keywords.

4 In the third pop-up menu, choose “does not contain” and type interview in the
final field.

This means that any clip that does not have the “interview” keyword applied will be
currently included in this Smart Bin.
 121
TIP  To make this Smart Bin available across different projects, click the Show
In All Projects checkbox. While this doesn’t make the contents of the Smart

Creating Custom Smart Bins

Bin available in other projects (see the next section, “Power Bins” for that), it
will enable you to reuse the rules for that Smart Bin in another project (including
old projects).
This is very useful if you often use the same rules for Smart Bins across
multiple projects. These Smart Bins are available in a Smart Bin folder called
“User Smart Bins.”

5 Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) the plus button to add another set
of criteria.
6 Change the All pop-up on this new set of rules to Any.

7 Click the pop-up that displays Keywords and press C to move to Clip Name, and then
press C again to move to Clip Type. Choose Clip Type from the options.
8 Choose Video from the final pop-up.
122 9 Click the plus button and choose Video+Audio from the final pop-up.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

10 Click Create Smart Bin to save this Smart Bin and its rules.

This Smart Bin now contains any clip without the “interview” keyword, but only if it is
either a clip that contains just video or a clip that contains video and audio. This will
exclude other clip types such as audio-only clips, graphics, and even timelines,
compound clips or multi-cam clips from finding their way into this Smart Bin.

TIP  To change the rules of any current Smart Bin, right-click on the Smart Bin and
choose Edit Smart Bin or double-click an existing Smart Bin.

As you can see, coupled with the power of metadata, Resolve has some flexible and
detailed searching functions, so you should always be confident that you’ll be able to find
your media. One word of caution, however, is that this is only as good as the quality of the
metadata provided or added in the first place. Sometimes a simple spelling mistake can
thwart all these potential benefits.
Power Bins 123

Bins and Smart Bins are great organizational tools to use within a project. The Power Bin is

Power Bins
a third bin type that can assist you with organization. Unlike regular bins or Smart Bins that
exist only within the current project, Power Bins appear in every project you create within a
database. They are useful for storing elements you want to reuse across separate projects,
such as graphics, titles, sound effects, or music files.
1 Choose View > Show Power Bins.

Power Bins are displayed in the media pool above the Smart Bins.

2 Select the Power Bin’s Master bin, and press Shift-Command-N (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-N
(Windows) to add a new Power Bin. Name the bin Logos.
3 Select the Graphics bin that’s currently in your project.
124 This bin contains a file called CC-logo.png.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

4 Drag CC-logo.png to the Logo Power Bin.

Because Power Bins appear in every project you create, this image file (plus its
associated metadata) will now be easily accessible for any project you have in your
current database.

NOTE  Multi-cam clips, compound clips, timelines, and Fusion clips cannot be
placed in Power Bins.

The next time you find yourself with a series of projects that share elements such as sound
effects, graphics, or common video elements, Power Bins can be a powerful tool to save
you time copying clips into different projects.

Creating Proxy Files for Editing

One of the last steps you might choose to perform before you begin editing in earnest is to
consider creating proxy versions of high-resolution media. Working with camera-original
content is ideal when color grading, but it can slow you down if it overtaxes the hardware
you’re working on. As you try out different shots, trimming and adjusting clips, you need
a proper feel for the pacing of a scene and the changes you’re making. A computer that
cannot process media efficiently at its current resolution can result in a frustrating
editing experience.
If you plan to edit and color grade on the same computer, Resolve includes a convenient 125
method for creating lower-resolution clips as proxy media while retaining a relationship with
the camera originals. Generating proxy media enables the speed you want when editing

Creating Proxy Files for Editing

yet leaves you only one click away from the camera-original media when you need it for
color grading or VFX work.
1 In the Scene 5 Smart Bin, select SF Bay Sunset Shot 15.

Look at the metadata for this clip.

This clip is at 4000 x 2160 resolution and uses the Apple ProRes 4444 XQ codec. It is
considerably larger than the other clips and may therefore slow down your computer
as you edit. You’d be well advised to generate optimized media for this clip. Before you
do so, however you’ll want to configure the resolution and codec to be used to create
the optimized file.
126 2 Choose File > Project Settings or press Shift-9 and choose the Master
Settings category.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

The Optimized Media and Render Cache area of the Master Settings pane includes
options for selecting the resolution and compression codec of the proxy media.
3 Click the Proxy Media Resolution pop-up menu to view its options.

You can choose to scale down the clip by a specific percentage or allow the automatic
setting to make the decision for you. Selecting Choose Automatically scales only those
clips that are larger than the timeline resolution in your Project Settings. Such clips are
scaled down to the current project’s timeline resolution or as closely as possible to the
original resolution. Clips at the timeline resolution or lower are not scaled.
4 Choose Quarter.
Using this setting will create an optimized version of this file that is 1000 x 540 resolution.
5 In the Proxy Media Format pop-up menu, choose ProRes 422 Proxy (macOS) or DNxHR 127
LB (Windows).

Creating Proxy Files for Editing

These two compression formats are low bandwidth, so they will provide better
performance as you edit. Typically, you want your proxy media to be as lightweight
as possible.
6 In the Working Folders section, check the Proxy generation location. This is where
your proxy media files will be stored. To make a change to this location, click Browse
and select a folder on your system.
Now you can return to the media pool and generate proxy media for the clip.
7 Click Save to close the Project Settings window.
8 With SF Bay Sunset shot 015 still selected, right-click the clip, and choose Generate
Proxy Media.

The creation of the proxy file begins, and a progress bar indicates how long it will take to
process the clip.
128 Identifying Proxy Media
With a simple project such as you have here, it’s relatively easy to remember which clips
you have optimized and which you haven’t. However, in a real-world project with dozens of
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

bins and hundreds of clips, you’ll need a way to quickly identify optimized clips.
1 Select the Scene 5 Smart Bin. Review the columns of the clips bin and locate the
Resolution and Codec columns.

The columns still display the camera-original resolution and codec. Remember, the proxy
media did not replace the camera-original files. They still exist on your hard drive and are
linked to these clips. So, Resolve continues to display the camera-original parameters.
2 Right-click any column heading in the bin, and in the list of column options, select
Proxy to enable the Proxy column.

The Proxy column displays None in the columns of clips that have no optimized media,
whereas it displays the resolution of the proxies for clips that have proxy media available.

TIP  You can create a Smart Bin to list all clips that have proxy media attached.

3 Select the SF Bay Sunset shot 15 clip to load it into the viewer.
You can easily switch between the proxy media and the original files in the
playback menu.
4 Place the playhead near the middle of this clip so you can see a silhouetted profile of
the cyclist.
5 Use your mouse scroll wheel to zoom in on the image to around 500%. 129

6 Hold down your middle mouse button and drag to reposition the image in the viewer
until you can see the edge of the cyclist’s silhouette against the brighter background.

Creating Proxy Files for Editing

You should see some indication of compression artifacts around the edges of Sasha’s
silhouette.
7 Choose Playback > Use Proxy Media If Available to deselect the option.
130 You should notice the compression artifacts disappear when you switch from the proxy
media to the original clip.
8 Choose Playback > Use Proxy Media If Available.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

9 In the magnification pop-up menu choose “Fit” or press Z return to viewing the entire
frame in the viewer.
Choosing Proxy Media will help you work faster during the edit because Resolve won’t
have to process the full image resolution, but you can quickly switch to the high-resolution
image for grading or other purposes whenever you need to.

Manually Linking to Proxy Media

You can also work with externally generated proxy files, which is particularly useful as you
can generate separate proxy media on another Resolve system or by using another video
compression application entirely.
1 In the media pool bin list, select the Video Clips bin.
2 Select all the clips in the Video Clips bin.
3 Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Link Proxy Media.
4 In the window that opens, navigate to R17 Editing Lessons > Media > Proxies. 131

Creating Proxy Files for Editing

This folder contains a series of (very) low resolution versions of the clips you have
been working with throughout this project.
5 Click Open.
DaVinci Resolve automatically searches for and connects the appropriate proxy media
with the original full-resolution clip in your project based on timecode and filename
(but ignoring file extension).

TIP  If you no longer want to use proxy media for a particular clip or clips, simply
right-click the selection and choose Unlink Proxy Media. The proxy file will remain
on your system in case you want to relink to it again later or it is in use in
another project.

Proxy Media vs. Optimized Media

On the surface, Proxy Media and Optimized Media appear similar in function. Both options are
designed to create lower bandwidth, easier to edit versions of source media. However,
Optimized Media is managed internally by DaVinci Resolve, cannot be exported, and is not
user accessible. In contrast, Proxy Media creates fully portable and independent media files
that can be easily managed by the user.
132
Saving Project Presets
The Project Settings window contains many settings, including timeline resolution and
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

frame rate, which can be used when initially creating timelines. Configuring the project can
be made easier if you have created presets for the most common project settings
that you need.

Interlaced Timelines
DaVinci Resolve 17 now has support for creating interlaced timelines. To enable interlaced
processing for a timeline, select the “Enable interlace processing” option in the Timeline
Format section of Project Settings or in the Format tab of the New Timeline window.

The frame rates for interlaced timelines are measured in fields per seconds and can be set to
50, 59.94 or 60.

To output a native interlaced signal using a Blackmagic Design monitoring device, choose the
appropriate setting in the Video Monitoring section of the Project Settings window.

Everything in an interlaced timeline, including graphics, Fusion compositions, and video clips,
are processed at the field level for high-quality compositing and titling for interlace delivery.

Rather than checking your project settings each time you create a project, you can
configure options in the Project Settings window and save those as your defaults. Then,
every time you open a new project, DaVinci Resolve will default to those settings. Plus, you
can also load these presets into existing projects.
1 Choose File > Project Settings or press Shift-9 to open the Project Settings window.
2 Click the Presets category. 133

Saving Project Presets

3 In the Presets panel, click the Save button to save any changes to the current project.
4 With the Current Project preset still selected, click “Save as.” Enter the new preset
name as R17 Editing Preset and click OK.

Your settings for this project are now saved. To quickly apply this preset to any
currently open project, simply select the preset and click Load.
134
TIP  If you want every new project to open using a specific configuration, you
can save any preset into the guest default config setting.
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

Right-click the desired project preset and choose Save as User

Default Config.

The settings of this preset are applied to the guest default config preset for
the current database. Now, every new project you create will use those
settings by default.

5 Having created your preset, click Cancel or press Esc to close the Settings window (no
need to Save).
Project presets allow you to easily create, manage, and switch between presets to enable
the various project timeline resolutions, frame rates, and proxy media format and locations,
along with all the other settings that you might need to work with. Project presets can save
nearly every parameter and setting across all panels in the Project Settings window; however,
only the guest default config is used as the default for new projects.
Now that you’ve seen some of the organizational aspects of working with Resolve, in the
next lesson let’s look at some of the more advanced techniques you can employ during
the creative process of editing.
Lesson Review 135

1 When using the Clone tool, what is the default checksum type?

Lesson Review
a) None
b) SHA 512
c) MD5
2 What methods can you use to auto sync sound to video files in the media page?
a) Waveform
b) Timecode
c) Markers
3 Which type of bin allows you access to its contents across different projects in the
same database?
a) Smart Bins
b) Super Bins
c) Power Bins
4 True or False? Proxy media replaces your original media files.
5 True or False? You can save a preset of your current project settings to make future
project configuration easier.
136
Answers
1 c) MD5
Lesson 2  Edit Preparation and Organization

2 a) Waveform and b) Timecode.

3 c) Power Bins.
4 False. Proxy media files are used when Playback > Use Proxy Media if Available is
enabled. Your original, full-resolution media files remain intact.
5 True. Project presets are saved in the Presets panel of the Project Settings.
Lesson 3

Editing Interviews

Being able to get the very best out of your Time

interview subject takes a lot of practice and This lesson takes approximately
50 minutes to complete.
a good ear for the spoken word.

When cutting interviews, it’s common to Goals

initially create the best-sounding interview Starting the Project 138
and almost completely disregard the visuals. Importing a “Selects” Timeline 141
This cut is commonly called a radio edit Using Stacked Timelines 151
because it is similar to editing an audio-only Decomposing Timelines 161
interview. Once you have the interview audio
Creating Variable Speed Changes 165
cut properly, you can turn your attention to
Using Smooth Cut 171
the video edits, often referred to as the paint
because you are illustrating, or “painting,” Working with Advanced
Transition Tools 173
your interview with appropriate pictures
from your B-Roll rushes. Lesson Review 177

In this lesson, you’ll use advanced audio and

video trimming and other workflow features
in DaVinci Resolve to finish an engaging
social media promo piece for a 100% vegan
restaurant, Miss Rachel’s Pantry.
138
Starting the Project
Let’s begin by opening a DaVinci Resolve Archive that has most of the radio edit already
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

edited but including some clips in which the audio hasn’t been examined for clarity. You’ll
play the clips and then begin to identify and remove the small stutters and stray “umms” to
get the best soundbites from the interviewee.
1 In the Project Manager, right-click and choose Import Project.

2 Navigate to R17 Editing Lessons > Lesson 03 and select R17 EDITING LESSON 03
INTERVIEW.drp.
3 Double-click the imported project in the Project Manager, click the Edit Page button
and relink the media.

4 Choose Workspace > Reset UI Layout to reset the workspace.

5 In the media pool, select the Timelines bin and double-click the WTTP Rough Cut
timeline to open it.
 139
TIP  If your display is large enough, use Shift-mouse scroll to resize the
timeline tracks.

Starting the Project

This timeline is the first part of the promo and has already been cut for you.
6 Return your playhead to the start of this timeline and play through to review the
edit so far.
As you can see, the piece is being driven by an interview with the eponymous Miss
Rachel, owner and head chef at Miss Rachel’s Pantry. Notice how the interview has
been edited so that it sounds clean, without many distracting pauses, stutters, or
poorly chosen words.

NOTE  Feel free to review the rushes from the Interview Clips bin to get a
sense of how this edit was pieced together from the original clips.

You will also notice a few small gaps that were left intentionally to add short pauses
between thoughts or subjects and to allow the edit to breathe. Small audio clips of
wildtrack or atmos help to fill the gaps left in the audio with the ambient sounds of the
restaurant. Much of the distracting jump cuts have then been covered by editing B-Roll
footage onto the B-Roll track.
To get a sense of how the cut interview would look without the B-Roll, you can disable
the track.
7 In the timeline track header for the B-Roll track (V2), click the Disable Video Track button.
140 All clips on the B-Roll track are disabled.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

8 Return the playhead to the start of the timeline and play through the edit once again.
Wow! The edited interview alone isn’t quite so polished. The jump cuts between the
edited soundbites really distract from what Miss Rachel is saying! The gaps that
provided a bit of pacing and breathing space now feel like yawning chasms!
It may not look pretty, but it does still sound good. This edit is often referred to as a
radio edit. When creating a radio edit, you want to remove any large or small bits of
audio that may detract from the message.

TIP  To get a feel for how well a radio edit works, try closing your eyes during
playback to just listen to the spoken words. If you can’t hear any obvious edits
and the pacing of the speech sounds natural, that’s generally the key to a
good radio edit.

9 Re-enable the clips on the B-Roll track by clicking the Enable Video Track button in the
timeline track header.

Now that you’ve seen how the edit is currently shaping up, it’s time to add a few more parts
of the interview and paint them with appropriate B-Roll.
Importing a “Selects” Timeline 141

While you could sit and continue watching all the unused interview footage and slowly start

Importing a “Selects” Timeline

to piece together the final part of the interview, it’s common for the director, edit producer,
or edit assistant to put together a selection of clips they would like you to use or think might
be useful. Quite often they might work on their own systems reviewing footage before
passing a “selects” timeline to you for the fine tuning and to incorporate into the main edit.
This is what has happened in this case. The director of the Miss Rachel’s Pantry promo has
got a cloned copy of the same rushes you’re working with and has used a free version of
DaVinci Resolve 17 to pull together the final part of the interview with Miss Rachel, together
with a few extra clips they’d like you to use as B-Roll.
Rather than sending a copy of the whole project for you to open and find the correct
version of the timeline, they have simply sent you the relevant timeline as a .drt file.

NOTE  The extension .drt refers to a DaVinci Resolve Timeline file and is an
efficient way of transferring timelines from one project, or Resolve system, to
another. Similar to an .xml or .aaf, a .drt file is a binary file that contains only the
relevant information needed to rebuild the timeline in a DaVinci Resolve project.
DaVinci Resolve Timeline files do not contain any media, so the recipient system
would need a copy of the media to be able to play the imported timeline, but this
also means they are very small and therefore can be easily transferred across a
network, via cloud storage or even email.
You can create a .drt file from your currently active timeline by choosing File > Export >
Export AAF, XML, DRT or pressing Shift-Command-O (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-O
(Windows) and choosing DaVinci Resolve Timeline Files (*.drt)” from the file type.

1 In the media pool, select the Timelines bin. This is where you will import the .drt file.
2 Choose File > Import Timeline > Import AAF, XML, DRT, ADL or press Shift-Command-I
(macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-I (Windows).
3 Navigate to R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 04 Interview/Timelines. Select
WTTP_New_Interview.drt and click Open.
The imported timeline appears in the Timelines bin and opens in the
Timelines window.
142 This timeline contains a basic assemble of three interview clips followed, after a short
gap, by four additional B-Roll clips. This is the footage the director would like you to
incorporate into the main edit. However, as directors aren’t skilled editors themselves,
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

they have left much of the detailed work to you.

A common workflow for many editors is to use multiple different timelines to work on small
sections of the overall edit; this could be the scenes of a feature film, the different parts of
a broadcast TV show, or different sections of a corporate video. These scenes or parts
often go through numerous iterations and changes themselves, before being edited
together into a final timeline that will be the version delivered to the distributor,
broadcaster, or video streaming site.

Working Across Multiple Timelines

In the following steps, you will use the timeline you’ve just imported to refine the new
interview into a radio edit, before incorporating it and the new B-Roll into the main
WTTP timeline.
1 In the WTTP_New_Interview timeline, click the Full Extent Zoom button to see the
whole timeline.

2 Play the first three interview clips to review the parts of the interview the director
has chosen.
Whenever you are editing an interview such as this, or any piece of dialogue, it is
useful to have a clear view of the clips’ audio waveforms.
3 Click the Timeline View Options button.
4 Holding Shift and using the mouse scroll wheel, adjust the height of the audio tracks
to reveal the clips’ audio waveforms. You may also wish to increase the height of the
 video track slightly and drag the bar dividing the timeline audio and video tracks so 143
you can see the waveforms clearly.

Importing a “Selects” Timeline

TIP  You can always adjust track heights directly in the timeline by dragging
the timeline track divider in the track headers or by using the Video and Audio
Track Height sliders in the Timeline View Options menu.

5 Play the first clip again and stop playback when you hear the first time that the
interview subject says, “Umm,” around two seconds from the beginning.

You should be able to clearly identify the problematic “Umm” in the waveforms. If not,
increase the zoom of the timeline either by clicking the Detail Zoom button in the
toolbar or by pressing Command-= (macOS) or Ctrl-= (Windows).
6 Ensure that audio scrubbing is enabled (press Shift-S if it is not) and jog the playhead
back and forward until you can hear the start of the “Umm.”
144 7 Press the B key to switch to Blade Edit mode. Click just before and just after she
says, “Umm.”
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

Doing so has isolated the “Umm” into a separate clip.

The dotted lines on the edit points represent through edits; that is, edits that are visible
on the timeline but playback smoothly because no frames have been removed from
either side of the cut. The edits were also added to both the audio and video parts of
the clip because the timeline linked selection was active.

TIP  To remove an unwanted through edit, in the timeline, place your playhead
after the through edit and choose Timeline > Join Clips or press Option-\
(backslash) in macOS or Alt-\ (backslash) in Windows.

8 Return to Selection mode by pressing A. Select the “Umm” clip, and press Shift-Delete
(or Backspace) to perform a ripple delete.

9 With your playhead over the new edit point, press / (slash) to play the edit.
 You’re aiming to have this audio edit be as inconspicuous as possible. When you play 145
around the current edit, try listening to the cut without watching the picture. Does it
sound as if an edit is there? If it does, you’ll need to do a little finessing, which you’ll

Importing a “Selects” Timeline

look at soon.

TIP  When you perform an edit, you can’t really know just how successful it will
be until you play back your timeline. It’s highly doubtful that things will be
perfect immediately (though happy editing accidents have been known to
occur). In reality, most edits you perform will always need to be improved with
a few trims here and there.

10 Continue playing what is now the second interview clip until you hear the next problem
where she says, “We’re taking dishes and flavors.” She stutters and says the word
“and” twice. It’s a simple task to tidy this up.
11 Press the JKL keys to play forward and backward over the clip, finally positioning the
playhead just before the first “and.”

TIP  Remember that you can jog the playhead back and forth by holding down
the K key and tapping the L or J key. It’s also useful to have audio scrubbing
turned on so you can hear the starts or ends of words. Choose Timeline >
Audio Scrubbing or press Shift-S to toggle audio scrubbing on and off.

12 Press Command-B (macOS) or Ctrl-B (Windows) to cut the clip.

TIP  Pressing this keyboard shortcut adds an edit point to a selected clip or
clips at the playhead position. It’s a little more precise than clicking to add a
cut in Razor Edit mode.

13 Jog forward until the playhead is located before she says the second “and.” Press
Command-B (macOS) or Ctrl-B (Windows) again to add a second through edit.
146 14 Move your playhead over the isolated “and” in the timeline and press Shift-V to select
the clip under the playhead.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

15 Press Shift-Delete (or Backspace) to ripple delete the clip.

16 Press / (slash) to play around the new edit.
Again, try listening to the edit without looking at the jump cut you’ve just created.
Remember, you’re trying to create a natural-sounding interview that won’t distract the
audience. Don’t worry if the current edit is not as smooth as you would like; you’ll
finesse it soon.
17 Keep playing through the interview. The next portion you’ll remove is the “Umm” just
after she says “textures.” This time, you’ll place timeline In and Out points to remove
this unwanted portion of the interview.
18 In the timeline, place your playhead at the start of the “Umm” and press I to add
an In point.
19 Jog the playhead forward six or seven frames until you hear her start to say, “and really
making them.” Press O to set an Out point just before she says, “and.”

TIP  Because Resolve’s playhead is inclusive of the current frame, In points

are always added to the head of the frame, and Out points are added to the
tail of the frame. When adding Out points, it’s often useful to find the frame
you want to keep (usually at the start of the next word) and then move the
playhead one frame back before adding the Out point. By doing so, you’ll
be sure to keep the frame you wanted.

You’ve now set In and Out points around the portion of the interview you want to remove.
20 Press Shift-Delete (or Backspace) to ripple delete the contents between the In and Out 147
points in the timeline.

Importing a “Selects” Timeline

21 Press / (slash) to preview your new edit.

Extra Credit
The director has also asked if you could tidy up a specific part of the interview; she doesn’t like
the interviewee’s use of the word “palatable” to describe the food. This is a slightly more
subjective cut, but when trying to put together the best radio edit description of the food at the
restaurant, it may be desirable to aim higher than simply “palatable.” Do you think you’d be
able to edit out the words “palatable and” so that she simply says, “making them delicious”?

Refining the Radio Edit

DaVinci Resolve has very comprehensive roll, ripple, slip, and slide trimming options that
you can perform using the mouse. However, when you’re making small, subtle, but precise
changes to an edit—often adding or removing single frames—it’s useful to perform most of
your trimming using keyboard commands. In doing so, you’ll exercise the most precise
control over each of your edits. Learning how to get the best from Resolve’s trimming
options is an important step in choosing the best technique for any given situation.
You’ll use keyboard shortcuts exclusively to move and select the cut points you need to trim.
1 Position the playhead at the start of the interview clips.
2 Press the Down Arrow to go to the first cut in that clip.
3 Press / (slash) to preview the edit.
Listen closely to the audio edit you created in the previous steps. Does it sound like a
natural, continual part of her speech pattern? Does she fully pronounce all the words
without having any part of what she’s saying cut off? Identifying how to adjust the edit
effectively, whether to add or remove frames from either the outgoing or incoming
clips, is a skill that will come only with practice.
4 Press T to enter Trim mode.
148 5 Press V to select the edit point nearest the playhead.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

NOTE  This keyboard shortcut selects the edit point nearest the playhead for
any track that has the auto tracks selector enabled.

6 Press the U key until only the outgoing (left) side of the cut is selected for
ripple trimming.

NOTE  This keyboard shortcut switches between roll, outgoing ripple,

incoming ripple, and back to roll.

7 Press , (comma) to trim the selected edit one frame to the left or . (period) to trim it one
frame to the right.
 149
TIP  Because you’re concentrating on the audio in these clips, it’s useful to
keep an eye on the clip waveforms to see if you’re adding or removing

Importing a “Selects” Timeline

parts of words.

8 If necessary, press U twice to change the trim to the head of the incoming shot, and
press , (comma) or . (period) to add or remove frames as needed.
9 Press / (slash) to play around the cut point and check your trim decision.

TIP  Press Shift-, (comma) or Shift-. (period) to perform a nudge operation that
trims multiple frames at once. The default value is 5 frames, but you can
change this value by going to DaVinci Resolve > Preferences, selecting User
Settings, and adjusting the Default Fast Nudge Length in the Editing panel.

Continue to refine the edit until you are happy with the results. Then you can move on
to the next cut.
10 Press the Down Arrow to go to the next cut in your timeline. This edit is selected in the
direction you last had the previous edit selected.

11 Press / (slash) to play around the cut point and to determine what you need to trim.
12 Decide whether the edit needs to be refined, and press U to change to the appropriate
trimming operation.
13 Press the , (comma) or . (period) keys to refine the edit, adding or removing frames from
either the tail of the outgoing clip or the head of the incoming clip.
14 Press / (slash) to review your trim.
15 When the audio edit sounds good, move on to the next cut.
16 Press the Down Arrow to go to the next cut in that clip.
17 Press / (slash) to play around the cut point and identify what you need to trim.
150 18 Press U to toggle the edit direction and press , (comma) and/or . (period) to
refine the edit.
19 Press / (slash) to review your trimming.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

20 When you have finished, press A to return to the Selection mode.

You have refined a small part of this interview using various techniques to remove
unwanted parts of what the subject says and refining the rest into a succinct description of
her business. When chipping away at a longer cut with the goal of making it shorter, these
keyboard-oriented trim commands enable you to make tiny, precise trims as you see and
hear the results, which can be invaluable!

Subframe Audio Editing

While video trimming is limited to a project’s frame rate, audio is captured using tens of
thousands of samples each second. DaVinci Resolve includes the ability to edit audio at the
subframe level in the edit page, which enables a much more detailed ability to trim that means
you can isolate subtle syllables or words that are slurred and make them sound clean and clearer.

You don’t need to do anything to activate this feature; it’s how the edit page automatically
works with audio. However, when trimming audio at the subframe level, it’s best to have
Snapping and Linked Selection turned off for the timeline; zoom in as far as you can and do
all your trimming with the mouse.

If you need greater precision than is offered by subframe audio editing, you’ll need to utilize the
editing functions on the Fairlight page where audio can be trimmed precisely to the sample level.

Completing the Radio Edit

Continue to edit the two additional interview clips the director has included in this timeline.
1 Edit the next clip so that Miss Rachel just says, “…vegan food is starting to get the
recognition it deserves.”
2 Edit the final interview clip so she says, “Because it seems like it’s a diet or a lifestyle of
cutting things out when, in reality, we’re just doing things completely differently.”
Once you have your radio edit complete, it’s time to add the new interview clips into the
main timeline and complete the edit.

NOTE  For consistency, a completed version of this radio edit timeline is available
for you to import into this project to complete the rest of the steps in this lesson.
Select the Timelines bin and choose File > Import Timeline > Import AAF, XML,
DRT, ADL and navigate to DR17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 03 Interview/Timelines/
WTTP_New_Interview_RADIO_EDIT.drt and click Open.
Using Stacked Timelines 151

Once you have a nice radio edit, you will want to incorporate it into the much longer

Using Stacked Timelines

interview that’s already been cut. To use one timeline as a source for another timeline, it’s
often easier to see both timelines at the same time. The edit page timeline can display
multiple timelines in different tabs or stacked on top of one another.
1 Ensure that the FINISHED_WTTP_New_Interview_RADIO_EDIT timeline has been
imported and is open in the Timelines window. Click the Full Extent Zoom button to
see the entire timeline.
2 Select the Timeline View Options menu and choose the first option to enable stacked
timelines.

Tabs appear above the timeline, with the timeline’s name. You can use the pop-up menu
on this tab to access any other timeline from your project (similar to the Timeline Viewer
pop-up menu) or open additional tabs using the plus button to display multiple timelines.

TIP  You can close existing tabs by clicking the X next to the name of each
tabbed timeline. You can also drag timeline tabs horizontally to change
their order.
152
NOTE  You can only open one instance of each timeline in any project.
If a timeline is currently open in a tab, it will be grayed out in the list of
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

available timelines.

In addition to the tabs, another second type of Add Timeline button appears in the
top-right corner of the timeline window.

3 In the upper-right corner of the timeline, click the New Stacked Timeline button.
A second timeline window appears below your current radio edit timeline.

4 In the upper timeline, close the WTTP Rough Cut timeline tab.

5 In the lower timeline window, from the Select Timeline pop-up menu on the empty
timeline tab, choose the WTTP Rough Cut timeline.
6 If necessary, resize your interface and use the zoom controls and timeline track height 153
sliders located in the Timeline View Options menu so you can see the contents of
each timeline clearly.

Using Stacked Timelines

NOTE  Each timeline has its own set of zoom and view controls that work
independently from any other open timelines. The currently active timeline
is indicated by highlighting the timeline’s name in red.

7 In the WTTP Rough Cut timeline, press Shift-Down Arrow until the playhead is at the
last marker, named “Add Final Interview.”
8 In the FINISHED_WTTP_New_Interview_RADIO_EDIT timeline, select all the edited
interview clips.
154 9 Drag the selected interview clips from the upper timeline into the lower timeline,
ensuring that they sit on the first video and audio tracks and snap to the last red
timeline marker.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

TIP  If you realize snapping is not enabled at this point, you can still enable
snapping by pressing N, even if you are currently in the middle of an
operation, such as dragging these clips between timelines. This toggles the
Snapping function until you release the mouse button.

The clips are instantly copied from the radio edit timeline into the main WTTP Rough Cut
timeline. This creates separate instances of these clips in your new timeline that you
can trim and adjust without disrupting or changing the original edits.
Now you’ll refine this interview further before adding the cutaways.
10 If necessary, move your WTTP Rough Cut timeline playhead to the last red
timeline marker.

TIP  Press Shift-Down Arrow to jump to the next marker and press Shift-Up
Arrow to jump to the previous marker.

11 Press / (slash) to preview this edit.

First, there’s a difference in audio levels, and second, the edit is a little too abrupt.
12 Select Timeline > Select Clips > Forward > Select Clips Forward on This Track, or press 155
Y to select all the clips forward of the playhead position.

Using Stacked Timelines

NOTE  This command selects clips forward on a track that is targeted by the
timeline destination controls. Press Command-Y (macOS) or Ctrl-Y (Windows)
to select all clips backward from the playhead on a selected track, press
Option-Y (macOS) or Alt-Y (Windows) to select all clips forward on all tracks,
and press Option-Command-Y (macOS) or Alt-Ctrl-Y (Windows) to select all
clips backward on all tracks.

13 Right-click any of the selected interview clips and choose Normalize Audio Levels.
156 14 In the Normalize Audio Levels dialog box, choose Sample Peak Program, change
Target Level to -12dBFS, Set Level to Independent, and then click Normalize.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

The audio for the selected clips is normalized and is now more in keeping with the
adjusted levels in the rest of the timeline.
Next, you will adjust the pacing of the new interview clips.
15 With the clips still selected, type +100 and press Enter.
This relative timecode adjustment automatically appears in the timeline viewer’s
timecode field.

16 Press Enter.

The selected clips move forward 1 second, leaving a 1-second gap.

17 Play forward and stop just as Miss Rachel says, “Vegan food…” (the sixth of these newly
added clips).
18 Make sure your playhead is on the clip where Miss Rachel says, “Because vegan 157
food…” and press Y to select only the clips forward of this point.

Using Stacked Timelines

19 Again, type +100 and then press Enter to move these clips forward by another
one second.

These one-second gaps you have created give the interview the breathing room required
to make Miss Rachel’s interview sound natural and easy to understand.

Adding the Cutaways and Filling in Atmos

Now that you have added the edited interview into this project’s main timeline, it’s time to
cover all those distracting visual jump-cuts with the B-Roll shots provided by the director.
1 In the uppermost timeline, FINISHED_WTTP_New_Interview_RADIO_EDIT, select
the first two clips after the gap.
158 2 Drag them to the second video track in the WTTP Rough Cut timeline, snapping
the end of the second clip to the end of the first interview clip after the second gap
you created.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

3 In the upper radio edit timeline, select the third cutaway clip and drag it into the WTTP
Rough Cut timeline so it snaps to the start of the third interview clip from the end.
4 Trim the end of this clip to snap to the start of the final interview clip. 159

Using Stacked Timelines

Now that you have added the new footage from the imported timeline, you can close
the stacked timelines.
5 Make sure the WTTP Rough Cut is the currently active timeline, then open the Timeline
View Options menu and click the stacked timelines button again to return to a single
timeline view and adjust the edit page interface to use the additional space.

TIP  You can choose to close a specific stacked timeline by clicking the Close
Stacked Timeline button in the upper-right corner of its timeline window.
160 By adding the B-roll footage to the track above the interview you have successfully
covered the jump cuts. Now, you just need to fill the gaps in the interview with a bit of
atmos or wildtrack. Thankfully, as you already have sections of atmos used for this
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

purpose on Audio 2, it’s simply a matter of copying those clips to the new gaps.
6 Select the second clip in the ATMOS audio track and press Command-C (macOS) or
Ctrl-C (Windows) to copy the clip.
7 Place your playhead at the start of the gap at the last red timeline marker.
8 Press Command-V (macOS) or Ctrl-V (Windows) to paste the copied audio clip.

9 Choose Playback > Next > Gap or press Option-Command-’ (apostrophe) on macOS or
Alt-Ctrl-’ (apostrophe) on Windows to move to the next gap.

NOTE  The Next Gap and Previous Gap commands move the playhead to the
appropriate gap on any auto select-enabled track.
10 Again, press Command-V (macOS) or Ctrl-V (Windows) to paste another copy 161
of the clip.
11 Move and trim the pasted audio clips so that they cover the gaps in the

Decomposing Timelines
interview audio.

Decomposing Timelines
Another way to edit one timeline into another is by dragging from the media pool directly
into the Timeline window. When editing in this manner, you create a compound clip by
default that appears as a single source clip in the timeline.

NOTE  You will learn more about creating your own compound clips for specific
tasks in Lesson 7.

Again, the director has put together a set of titles she would like you to include at the end
of this short promo for Miss Rachel’s Pantry.
1 From the Timelines bin, drag the Closing Titles timeline to the source viewer.
162 The source viewer now displays the contents of the timeline currently loaded into it.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

2 Choose Timeline > Swap Timeline and Source Viewer.

The Source and Timeline Viewers swap positions, and the timeline shows the content
of the source viewer, which comprises four separate titles, each animated with dynamic
zoom and a short fade in and out.
3 Choose Timeline > Swap Timeline and Source Viewer or press Command-Up Arrow 163
(macOS) or Ctrl-Up Arrow (Windows) to swap the viewers once more.
You need to edit these titles at the end of your WTTP Rough Cut timeline.

Decomposing Timelines
4 Press Shift-F12 to perform an Append At End edit.

The titles appear at the end of the current timeline but are displayed by default as a
single compound clip.
A compound clip is actually a special clip used to group multiple clips together as one.
Using compound clips can make it easier to manipulate, add effects to, color correct,
and animate many clips in a timeline at the same time because it is treated as a single
source clip. You’ll learn more about the process for creating your own compound clips
in a later lesson. In this case though, you’ll want to access the individual titles inside the
compound clip so you can trim them all to the correct duration.
5 In the timeline, select the Closing Titles compound clip and choose Clip >
Decompose in Place.

NOTE  You can identify a clip as a compound clip from its icon, which looks
like a layered video clip.
164 The compound clip is removed, and the original titles are displayed. Although compound
clips provide some convenience by treating multiple clips as one, having independent
titles in the timeline allows you to better trim them to the end of the music.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

TIP  You can tell DaVinci Resolve to automatically decompose compound clips
automatically when you edit one timeline into another by choosing Edit >
Decompose Compound Clips On Edit.

6 Select the four titles at the end of the timeline.

7 In the toolbar, click the Trim Edit mode button, or press T.
8 Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Change Clip Duration or press
Command-D (macOS) or Ctrl-D (Windows).
9 In the Change Clip Duration window, type 300 and click Change.

The clips each change duration to 3 seconds and, because the Trim Edit mode is
active, ripple to the correct duration.
Many complex edits are often broken down into multiple different timelines, each of which 165
might go through several different versions before being reassembled back into the finished
file for delivery. By carefully managing each of these timelines, you’ll find that it’s a more

Creating Variable Speed Changes

efficient way of working through an edit than trying to do everything in one massive timeline.
Next, you’ll explore some of the tricks that can be used to help refine a timeline such as
this, where you’re trying to present lots of disparate pieces of footage, often shot at
different times and under different conditions, as a single, unified production.

Creating Variable Speed Changes

DaVinci Resolve has many advanced controls to manipulate the playback speed of clips.
One set of these tools, the retime controls, enable you to apply multiple speed changes to
the same clip without splitting the clip into multiple cuts. Such speed changes are commonly
known as speed ramps. To explore these techniques, you’ll finesse the WTTP Rough Cut
timeline you added to in the previous lesson.
1 Press A to ensure you are in Selection mode.
2 In the timeline, select the yellow clip on the B-roll track and press / (slash) to play
the selection.
This shot of the barbecued seitan would be nicer if it slowed down as the plate came
closer, allowing the viewer’s eye to linger over this dish.
3 Click the Detail Zoom button to zoom into the clip on the timeline.
4 Press Command-R (macOS) or Ctrl-R (Windows).

A bar appears along the top of the clip with the speed percentage of the clip displayed
underneath the video thumbnails.
5 Place the playhead about halfway into the duration of the clip.

This is the location where you would like to start slowing down the clip playback. You
do so by adding a speed point at the playhead location.
166 6 Along the bottom of the clip, click the disclosure arrow to the right of the speed
percentage display and choose Add Speed Point.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

The speed point divides the clip into two sections, with each section now having its
own playback speed. You can set the speed in the menu you used to set this
speed point.

You will increase the speed slightly for the first half of the clip, and then slow it down
for the second half.
7 Click the disclosure arrow for the segment on the left and choose Change Speed > 110%.
8 Position your mouse pointer on the right edge of the Speed Change bar, and when the 167
pointer changes to a double arrow, you can drag the edge of the clip to the point where
she laughs. Doing so reduces the speed even further and better covers the jump cut.

Creating Variable Speed Changes

9 Play over the speed change to view the results.
Being able to manipulate the speed at different points in a clip is a simple yet powerful
technique. However, like most things in editing, you rarely set it and forget it. You will more
likely want to make changes to the speed and how it appears.

Modifying Speed and Quality

You can modify the position of speed points and the playback speed of each section by
dragging the speed point. Each speed point has two handles. Dragging the upper handle
speeds up or slows down the section to the left, whereas dragging the lower handle
changes the frame on which speed point occurs.
Changes playback speed to
the speed section to the left.

Changes frame where speed change

occurs without changing speed.

On this clip, if you want the speed change to occur when the plate is a bit more fully
onscreen, you can drag the lower handle.
1 Drag the lower handle to the right until the plate is more fully in the frame.
168 Notice that the speeds of both sections on either side of the speed point did not
change speed. Only the location of the speed point has changed. If you wish to
increase the playback speed of the first half of the clip, you can drag the upper handle.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

2 Drag the upper handle to the left until the speed display at the bottom of the clip is
around 150%.

Changing the speed for the first half of the clip as well as the location of the speed
point has changed the clip’s overall duration. You’ll need to change the speed of the
second half of the clip to extend it over the next clip on video track 1. The last segment
does not have a speed point, but you can change the speed of the segment using the
speed bar at the top of the clip.
3 As you did previously, drag the speed bar corner to the left until the clip is extended to
cover the clip on video track 1 and the speed of the second half is around 25%

4 Play over the clip to review your changes.

5 Select the clip and press press Command-R (macOS) or Ctrl-R (Windows) or right-click
the clip and choose Retime Controls to close the retime controls.
You now have an eye-catching shot that feels more contemporary and engaging than
the straight food shot you had previously. Unfortunately, the slow parts of the footage
now appear a little stuttery because Resolve has to repeat frames to create that
speed change.
6 Select the clip in the timeline and open the Inspector. In the Retime and Scaling
controls, change Retime Process from Project Settings to Optical Flow.
 169
TIP  The Motion Estimation menu includes a more advanced option called
Speed Warp that can improve optical flow on shots with criss-crossing objects

Creating Variable Speed Changes

such as cars, picket fences, and shots of walking and running legs.

7 Finally, to smooth the transition between to the two speed sections, right-click the clip
in the timeline and choose Retime Curve.

The Retime Frame Curve opens below the clip in the timeline.

The Retime Frame Curve displays a diagonal line that represents a time graph where
the vertical axis represents each frame of a clip’s source media, and the horizontal axis
represents the frame of playback in the timeline. Normally, this graph would be a
constant progression from bottom left to top right. However, in this case you’ll see
where a keyframe has been added that interrupts the straight progression for this clip.
Sometimes it’s easier to change the graph to something that’s easier to view.
170 8 Click the Curve pop-up menu at the top-left of the Curve Editor.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

9 Select Retime Speed and deselect Retime Frame.

The Retime Speed Curve is presented as a flat, horizontal line. To increase the speed
of a section, drag the line up; to decrease the speed for a section, drag the line down.
A tooltip displays a percentage of the original speed for that section. The amount of
time the speed change takes to occur is represented by the vertical line that joins the
different levels. In this case, because the line is completely vertical, the speed change
is instant and abrupt. To smooth the interpolation, you need to add handles to
the keyframe.
10 In the Retime Speed Curve, click the keyframe to select it.

11 Click the Bézier control.

12 Drag the handles out to adjust the amount of smoothing applied to the speed change. 171

Using Smooth Cut

13 Finally, right-click the clip and choose Retime Curve to hide the retime curve.
This food shot in your timeline is now much more dynamic and exciting. You’ve also easily
manipulated a moving shot to increase its impact and help cover the jump cuts in the
interview edit.

Using Smooth Cut

Another way to hide a jump cut from your viewer is to use the Smooth Cut transition.
1 In the timeline, place your playhead at the first red timeline marker. Press / (slash) to
preview the cut.
This is a classic jump cut that distracts from the story about the merits of this vegan
restaurant.
2 Open the Effects Library, select the Video Transitions group, and in the Dissolve
category, locate Smooth Cut.
172 3 Double-click the Smooth Cut transition to add it to the edit point.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

4 Select the Smooth Cut transition in the timeline and set the duration of the transition to
4 frames in the Transition Inspector.

5 Press / (slash) to play around the selected transition.

You should see that Resolve successfully manages to blend the two sides of the jump
cut into what appears to be a single take.
Remember, though, that you should use this transition with great care; you don’t want to 173
change or misrepresent the meaning of something your interviewee said through your
editing, no matter how subtly!

Working with Advanced Transition Tools

Working with Advanced
Transition Tools
Transitions in Resolve are very straightforward to use. But they also allow you to go much
deeper into transition customization than you might have thought possible. Resolve has a
built-in curve editor for transitions that enables you to customize the acceleration of any
transition animation. Let’s create one for your radio edit.
1 Go to the second marker in the timeline.
This is the shot of macaroni and cheese in the middle of your timeline.
2 Play over the cross dissolve transition at the end of this clip.
The transition works well, but the incoming shot takes a few frames before the camera
motion settles down. If you ease the transition’s start, it will fade into the incoming shot
more slowly, thereby reducing the impact of the camera movement at the start of the
clip. You can address this by creating a custom ease-out using the Transition
Curve editor.
3 Click the Detail Zoom button and select the transition. Click the diamond icon to open
the keyframe track.

TIP  If you can’t see the diamond icon on your transition, zoom further in on
your timeline.

If you just wanted to move a keyframe earlier or later, you could use this editor.
However, to create a custom acceleration curve, you must use the curve editor.
174 4 On the right side of the keyframe editor that appears below the clip, click the curve
editor icon to open the Transition Curve editor.
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

You change the slope of the curve in this curve editor to change the transition
acceleration. The default linear transition is a diagonal line from the lower left to the
upper right. However, you can flatten that line’s slope to slow the transition speed.
To slow down the curve at the start, you can add a control point along the line and
decrease the slope between the initial control point on the left and the new control
point you add.
5 Move the playhead to about one-third of the way through the transition and click the
Add Keyframe button.
6 Drag the new keyframe down until the Transition Curve tooltip reads 0.10. 175

Working with Advanced Transition Tools

This setting indicates that at this keyframe, the transition will be only 10% complete.
7 Press / (slash) to play around the selected transition and view the results.
If the acceleration isn’t hiding enough of the slow camera start at the beginning of the
clip, you can move the control point horizontally to change the timing.
8 In the Keyframes Editor track, drag the control point to the right until it is almost in the
middle of the clip to lengthen the slow acceleration.
176 9 Press / (slash) to play around the selected transition.
Although you delayed the acceleration, a very linear transition remains between the
control points. You can smooth these transitions using the interpolation buttons at the
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

top of the curve editor.

10 With the keyframe still selected, click the second interpolation button from the left to
create an ease-in/ease-out interpolation for the control point and to display Bézier
handles that will allow you to perform further refinement.

Because the Bézier handles are almost completely horizontal when added, they will
create a pause in the transition, holding it for just a moment. However, that’s not what
you want, so you’ll need to adjust the handle to accentuate the slow acceleration at the
start of the clip.
11 Adjust the Bézier handles to create a smoother curve.

12 Press / (slash) to play around the selected transition.

13 If you are happy with the results, you can close the curve editor by clicking the 177
Transition Curve editor button in the upper-right corner of the graph. Then, click the
diamond-shaped Keyframes Editor button in the lower-right corner of the transition

Lesson Review
icon in the timeline to close the Keyframes Editor.
Custom transitions such as this are most often used in very specific situations, but you can
also save them as presets if you anticipate the need to reuse a custom curve transition in
the future.

Lesson Review
1 What is known as a “radio edit”?
a) When your edit will be used on radio as well as television
b) A cut-down version of your film used by reviewers
c) A technique of concentrating on the audio before editing the visuals
2 Where can you find the option to show stacked timelines?
a) Drag one timeline on top of another to display two timeline windows.
b) The Timeline View Options menu
c) There is no option to show stacked timelines.
3 Where are the Retime Process options located for each clip?
a) In the Retime Frame Curve
b) In the Inspector
c) By double-clicking a clip
4 What transition should be used to make short jump cuts less noticeable?
a) Smooth wipe
b) Smooth dissolve
c) Smooth cut
5 How can you access the advanced transition controls?
a) Right-click the transition in the timeline and choose Advanced Transition Controls.
b) Click the transition’s Keyframe button and click the Transition Curve editor button.
c) Click the transition’s Curve Editor button in the Inspector.
178
Answers
1 c) A “radio edit” is created when you focus on editing the audio of an interview to make
Lesson 3  Editing Interviews

it sound smooth and natural before turning your attention to the covering visuals.
2 b) The Timeline View Options menu
3 b) In the Inspector, specifically in the Video tab.
4 c) Smooth cut is a special-purpose transition designed to make short jump cuts less
noticeable by using optical flow processing to automatically morph a subject between
two positions across the duration of the transition.
5 b) To reveal the Transition Curve editor, click the Keyframe diamond icon in the lower-
right corner of the transition to display the Keyframes Editor, and then click the Curve
Editor button.
Lesson 4

Cutting a Dialogue
Scene
Editing a dialogue scene is often done by Time
establishing the location and cutting between This lesson takes approximately
60 minutes to complete.
shots as they would play out in real time.
Commonly known as continuity editing, this Goals
technique is centered around cutting Selecting Your Best Takes 180
between two or more shots, alternating
Editing with Continuity 193
back-and-forth between each character as
Match Frame with an Offset 199
their dialogue and reactions warrant. In this
lesson, you’ll apply this continuity technique Finish Cutting the Scene 203

to a scripted scene. You’ll start with one of the Choosing from Multiple Takes 203
most firmly established conventions in Going Beyond the Straight Cut 213
cinema—the shot/reverse-shot—and see how Trimming On-the-Fly 218
the editing, match framing, and trimming tools Putting Yourself to the Test 221
in DaVinci Resolve 17 can speed up this
Dynamic Trim Mode 222
classic editing style.
Lesson Review 225
180
Selecting Your Best Takes
Watching each take and choosing those parts that feature the best performances is often
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

the most time-consuming part of your entire editing process, but it is also a critical step in
becoming familiar with the available content and identifying which shots might and might
not work. Often, you might need to work with different parts of different takes to get the
best performances. Working with subclips is one way to help you efficiently identify and
isolate those best parts within each clip.
A subclip is a totally new instance of a clip that you create from a selection within a longer
clip. By creating subclips of your content, you can avoid repeatedly sifting through long
clips looking for a particular bit you remember. If you make subclips while locating the
good bits within clips, you’ll find it easier to find them again when you need them.
1 In the Project Manager, right-click in an empty area and choose Import Project.
Navigate to R17 Editing > Lessons > Lesson 04 Dialogue. Select the R17 EDITING
LESSON 04 DIALOGUE.drp project file and click Open.
2 Open the project and click the edit page button, if necessary. Relink the media files.

This project contains a series of dailies organized in a couple of bins.

3 In the timeline, click the Full Extent Zoom button, return the playhead to the start of the
timeline, and play through to review the scene.
 This small scene is from a short science fiction film about robots going rogue (the 181
“Syncs” referred to by Agent Jenkins).

Selecting Your Best Takes

This initial timeline lays out the scene using one take but requires more work to add
shots of the Doctor and show the interaction between the characters.
4 In the media pool bin list, select the “Dailies day 02” bin.

This bin contains the various takes featuring Doctor Kaminsky.

5 Select all three clips in this bin and drag them into the source viewer.
182 By dragging these clips into the source viewer at the same time, you can access them
using the Recent Clips drop-down menu at the top of the viewer.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

Doing so provides an easy way to switch between the last 10 clips you loaded in the
source viewer without searching for them in the media pool.
6 If it’s not already open in the viewer, select 02_Dr_Sarah Close Up_.mov in the
Recent Clips pop-up menu to load it into the source viewer. Play the clip to review it.
This clip starts with a clapper and takes a good 20 seconds to get going. Instead of
watching or scrubbing through the unusable footage each time you return to this clip,
you will make a new subclip of just the relevant footage.
7 In the source viewer options menu, select Show Full Clip Audio Waveform to help you
see where the dialogue starts and stops.
 183
TIP  Show Full Clip Audio Waveform works well for these short takes. For
longer takes, you may find the Show Zoomed Audio Waveform a better option

Selecting Your Best Takes

when judging where the dialogue lines start and stop.

8 Scrub through the clip until just before Doctor Kaminsky is revealed on the left of frame
(at around 01:00:38:00).
9 Play the take until she turns her head toward the camera and then stop playback.
The director has decided that the bald male actor is not making the cut, but you can
still use the remaining portion of the take.
10 In the source viewer, find the part when the male actor is walking away, just before
Doctor Kaminsky turns her head away from him (around 01:00:45:00).

This location is far enough into the clip to lose most of the bald actor and makes for a
good starting point for your subclip.
184 11 Press I to mark an In point.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

12 Play the clip and mark an Out point just before you hear the director yell, “Cut,”
(around 01:01:10:00).
13 Choose Mark > Create SubClip or press Option-B (macOS) or Alt-B (Windows) to make 185
a subclip based on these In and Out points.

Selecting Your Best Takes

In the media pool, a new clip is created in the currently selected bin with the word
“subclip” appended to the original clip name.

You might find it useful to keep these subclips in a separate bin, so you don’t confuse
them with the original source clips.

NOTE  A subclip might seem like a duplication of the original clip, just limited
to the portion of the clip between the In and Out points you’ve just set.
However, it’s worth noting that a subclip still references the original source
media file on your hard drive, so it hasn’t actually duplicated any media. This
means you can create multiple subclips from the same master clip, and they
won’t take up any additional storage space on your hard drive.

14 Select the Master bin, and then choose File > New Bin, or press Shift-Command-N
(macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-N (Windows) to create a new bin. Name this bin Subclips.
186 15 Move the 02_DrSarah_Close_Up_.mov Subclip from the “Dailies day 02” bin to this
new Subclips bin.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

16 Select the Subclips bin to see its contents.

17 In the source viewer Recent Clips drop-down menu, choose

03_DrSarah_Wide _Take1_.mov to open it in the source viewer.
18 Play the clip from the beginning and mark an In point when the bald actor begins to 187
walk away (around 01:02:55:00).

Selecting Your Best Takes

19 Find the point at the end of the take just before the director yells “Cut”
(around 01:03:50:00) and mark an Out point.

TIP  You should be able to easily identify both these parts of the clip using the
audio waveform overlay.
188 20 Press Option-B (macOS) or Alt-B (Windows) to create another subclip in your currently
selected Subclips bin.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

21 In the source viewer Recent Clips pop-up menu, choose

04_Wide_DrSarah_Take 2_.mov.
22 Again, because this is a second take of the wide shot, mark an In point when the bald
actor begins to walk away.
23 And again, find the end of the clip where the director shouts “Cut” and mark an 189
Out point.

Selecting Your Best Takes

24 This time, drag the marked clip from the source viewer back into the Subclips bin in the
media pool.

The new subclip is added to the bin.

190
Subclips and Duration Markers
Although a subclip is totally independent of its source clip, it does differ from placing a duration
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

marker to identify a portion of a clip, which is a technique you may already be familiar with. Unlike
ranges identified by duration markers, you can organize subclips into their own bins, load them
into the source viewer, add metadata, and edit them into the timeline using any of the editing
functions in Resolve. In effect, you’re treating them exactly like any other source clip.

You can convert existing In and Out points into duration markers by choosing Mark > Convert
In and Out to Duration Marker or convert existing duration markers to In and Out points by
choosing Mark > Convert Duration Marker to In and Out.

Modifying Subclips
One limitation of a subclip is that, even though it is referencing the original source media file,
it is limited to the initial In and Out points you used to create it. Therefore, it’s good practice
to set your initial In and Out points a little before and after the portion you want to subclip,
thereby leaving a little bit of wiggle room when you later trim the clips in the timeline.
However, when you find that you need a few extra frames not included in your subclip, you
can always extend the boundaries of that subclip.
1 Double-click the 04_Wide_DrSarah_Take 2_.mov Subclip to load it into the source
viewer and see the full extent of the subclip you created in the previous steps.
2 In the media pool, right-click the 04_Wide_DrSarah_Take2_.mov Subclip and choose 191
Edit Subclip.

Selecting Your Best Takes

In the dialog that appears, you can adjust the subclip’s start and end values or remove
the limits of the subclip entirely.
192 3 Change the New Subclip Start time to 10 seconds earlier, and then click Update.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

The source viewer updates the positions of the In and Out points to reflect this change,
and the bald man is once more included in this subclip.

Now that you have your subclips created, you can start to cut them in to the current timeline
to build out the scene.
Editing with Continuity 193

You will use the single take in the timeline as a reference for editing dialogue and action

Editing with Continuity

from other takes and using some editing functionality that is unique to DaVinci Resolve to
add close-ups and reaction shots that build both time and space continuity.
1 Ensure that you have the 01 Edit Start timeline open it in the timeline viewer. If
necessary, you can select it from the pop-up list at the top of the timeline viewer.

TIP  You can choose how the project’s timelines are ordered in this list in
DaVinci Resolve > Preferences > User > UI Settings and the Timeline Sort
Order pop-up menu.

This timeline will act as the master shot for this scene.
2 Play the timeline from start to end to remind yourself of the lines of dialogue and how
the scene plays out.
194 This master shot focuses on the FBI agents, so it is up to you to add reverse-angle
shots of the doctor—a process many editors refer to as “removing the air.” More
precisely, it consists of eliminating unnatural intonations or pauses in the dialogue
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

when you cut between the different takes. As with the initial steps in the previous
lesson, you are focusing on the pacing of the dialogue from these different takes to sell
the idea of these characters having a seamless conversation.
3 In the timeline, navigate to the cut point between the first two clips and mark
an In point.

4 Play the clip and mark an Out point just before Agent Jenkins’s line, “I’m
Agent Jenkins…”

5 From the Subclips bin, double-click 02_DrSarah_Close Up_.mov Subclip to open it in

the source viewer.
 You will start by marking an Out point, not because you want to backtime the edit, 195
but because it will be easier to locate the same line of dialogue.

Editing with Continuity

6 Mark an Out point on 02_DrSarah_Close Up_.mov Subclip just after Doctor Kaminsky
says, “Ah yes?”
You need a short amount of this clip to show the party scene and introduce the lead
female character.
196 7 In the source viewer, type -300 and press Enter to move the playhead back 3 seconds.
Because this dialog is just incidental chit-chat before the doctor turns, this will be a
good place to begin this shot.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

8 Press I to mark an In point.

Hold on. You have now managed to add a total of four points (an In and Out point in
the timeline and another In and Out point in the source viewer). Also, while all four
marked points are well placed, the resulting durations of your two selections differ: in
the upper-left corner of both the source and timeline viewers, you have the current
marked duration: 03:01 for the source and around 4:15 for the timeline (depending on
where you actually placed your timeline Out point).
 As you are now no doubt aware, many of the editing functions in DaVinci Resolve 197
follow the standard rules of three-point editing, therefore only three of these four
points would be valid for a standard overwrite or insert edit. You can, however,

Editing with Continuity

preview which marks Resolve will use.
9 Choose View > Show Preview Marks.

The preview marks display a virtual indicator in the timeline ruler to highlight where the
source clip’s Out point will land.

10 Press F10 or click the Overwrite Clip button above the timeline.

Performing an overwrite edit limits the edit based on the shorter source clip. This
leaves a jarring repetition of a line from the previous take and a pause before Agent
Jenkins continues with his next line. If you were to proceed with this edit, you would
have to trim the pause to correct for the continuity of the scene.
11 Choose Edit > Undo, or press Command-Z (macOS) or Ctrl-Z (PC).
Fortunately, Resolve has a unique edit called Ripple Overwrite that will overwrite the
source clip and appropriately trim the timeline simultaneously. The ripple overwrite
replaces a selection in the timeline with a clip of a different length and does so without
198 opening a gap or overwriting the adjacent clip. In this case, Ripple Overwrite will use
all the In and Out points you have marked, which means it is a four-point edit.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

12 Choose Edit > Ripple Overwrite or press Shift-F10 to perform the ripple overwrite edit.

In the timeline, play over the edit to verify that you have successfully overwritten the
unwanted part of the clip with a shot that introduces the doctor. This time, the frames that
were previously left between the preview mark and the timeline’s Out point were
automatically removed by the ripple overwrite edit.
Match Frame with an Offset 199

You will continue with another example of this method of continuity editing by cutting in

Match Frame with an Offset

another reaction shot of the doctor. This time you’ll use Resolve’s match frame feature to
keep the source clip and timeline in sync, making it easier to cut in reverse angles.
1 In the timeline, position the playhead at the end of 02_DrSarah_Close Up_
.mov Subclip.
2 Play the timeline until you hear the offscreen doctor, say, “I’ll catch up with you later.”
You need a reaction from the doctor to indicate how she feels about the FBI suddenly
showing up at her party, but you also want to end the reaction shot in time to cut back
to the FBI agents to get their impatient reactions.
3 Position the timeline playhead after the FBI agent says, “We need you to come with
us right away” and before the doctor says, “Umm”, roughly 3 to 4 seconds from
the last cut.
4 Press I to mark an In point in the timeline.

At this point, you can turn your attention to the source clip that you want to cut in.
Because the dialogue is the same on both the doctor’s close-up in the source viewer
and the FBI agent’s shot in the timeline, you want to pick up the source clip dialogue in
a spot that roughly matches your timeline playhead location. Resolve has a very nice
match frame feature to do just that.
200 5 In the timeline and without moving the timeline playhead, Option-double-
click (macOS) or Alt-double-click (Windows) anywhere on the previous
02_DrSarah_Close Up_ .mov Subclip.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

The 02_DrSarah_Close Up_.mov Subclip is loaded in the viewer as a match frame

with the previously marked In and Out points used to edit the clip into the timeline.
However, the playhead in the source viewer is offset from the Out point by the same
3 to 4 seconds that you moved the timeline playhead. This is where the doctor starts
to react to the FBI and her assistant stops speaking, and it’s a great place for you to
add your next In point.
6 Press I to mark an In point in the source viewer.
 You’ll place the Out point after the friend asks if the doctor is OK, and the doctor 201
turns away.
7 Play the clip in the source viewer and mark an Out point just after the doctor turns her

Match Frame with an Offset

head but before she says, “Yeah, yeah,” (around 01:01:02:00).

A preview mark appears in the timeline showing us the implied Out point.

8 Press Q to switch to the timeline viewer and play forward in the timeline. Set an Out
point just after the doctor’s assistant asks, “Is everything OK, Sarah?” but before the
doctor starts to reply “Yeah, yeah.”

Notice that your timeline Out point should be a few frames after the preview mark. It
may seem a minor amount, but it means you shouldn’t have to go in and trim the edit at
this stage.
202 9 Press Shift-F10 to perform a ripple overwrite edit.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

Now that you have placed your shot/reverse shot to move this dialogue scene forward,
it’s time to review the edits.
10 In the timeline, select the first three shots of the doctor and FBI agents and press /
(slash) to play the current selection.

This type of shot/reverse shot juxtaposition is the most common technique used when
initially blocking out a scene such as this. That’s why the ability to keep the same offsets
between source and timeline using the modified match frame feature is a major timesaver.
Finish Cutting the Scene 203

There are still a few edits to make in this timeline before the scene is ready to show the

Choosing from Multiple Takes

director. Using the 04_Wide_ Dr Sarah_ Take 2_.mov Subclip take and Ripple Overwrite,
edit the following lines of dialogue from Doctor Kaminsky into the 01_Edit Start timeline to
complete the scene.
1 “I’m sure it’s fine…Are you going to tell me what this is about?”
2 “My help? You’ll have to do better than that.”
3 “You mean, like, a virus? That wouldn’t be possible.”
For additional practice, try the following using video-only overwrite edits:
4 Add a video-only reaction shot of Doctor Kamisky when Agent Jenkins says,
“…we believe one of your Syncs is carrying…”
5 Add another reaction shot of Doctor Kamisky when Agent Jenkins says, “I need you
to tell me everything you know about the Syncs…”

Reviewing the Finished Timeline

If you wish to view a version of this timeline created using the steps detailed in this lesson,
select the Timelines bin, choose File > Import Timeline > Import AAF, XML, DRT, ADL and
navigate to R17 Editing/Lessons/Lesson 04 Dialogue/Sync Scene Rough Cut.drt.

Choosing from Multiple Takes

When cutting dialogue, you can easily fall into the trap of cutting based solely on words.
But dialogue editing is trickier than that. You must not only pay attention to the words but
also the eyes, the mouths, and the body language of the performers. All these performance
elements are essential to establishing the emotional pacing of a scene and establishing the
scene’s storyline. So, even though your cut may maintain dialogue continuity, you might
want to search out alternate takes that feature superior performance elements, alternative
looks, or body or camera movements.
Comparing different takes often means repetitively revising your timeline. For example,
imagine that the director wants to see what a wide shot of the doctor would look like
instead of the close-up. To begin with, you will use a ripple overwrite edit to swap the
first shot of the doctor.
204 1 In the timeline, position your playhead anywhere over the second clip in this timeline,
02_Dr_Sarah_CloseUp.mov Subclip.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

2 From the Subclips bin, double-click 03_Dr Sarah_ Wide _Take 1_.mov Subclip to
open it in the source viewer.

3 Play from the start of this subclip until just after Doctor Kaminsky says “Yeah, yeah” and
set an Out point.
4 Press Shift-F10 to perform a ripple overwrite of the shot in the timeline. 205

Choosing from Multiple Takes

The ripple overwrite edit quickly swaps out the old take for the new take.
5 Press the Up Arrow to move to the start of the new clip in the timeline, press Shift-V to
select the clip, and press / (slash) to play the selection.

Even though you set only one Out point, the ripple overwrite used the start of the subclip
as well as the In and Out points of the timeline clip under the playhead to complete the
four-point edit and is a great example of how flexible this editing function is.

Take Selector
In the above example, ripple overwrite makes the process of editing one take for another
easy, however most editors will tell you that a director is rarely satisfied with that and often
wants to see multiple choices in quick succession. Never fear; as you’d expect,
DaVinci Resolve makes this process a lot easier with the Take Selector.
1 In the timeline, position the playhead at the second shot in your timeline, the
03_Dr Sarah_ Wide _Take 1_.mov Subclip.
206 The director wonders aloud how this wide shot compared with the earlier close-up.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

2 From the source viewer clips list, select 02_Dr_Sarah_CloseUp.mov Subclip to bring
this take back in the source viewer.
You’ll need to quickly reset the In and Out points around the opening part of
this subclip.
3 In the source viewer, type -1000 to move the playhead 10 seconds backward.
4 Play forward until just before Agent Jenkins says “I’m Agent Jenkins…” (around 207
01:00:55:00) and add an Out point.

Choosing from Multiple Takes

5 Type -300 to move the playhead back a further 3 seconds and add an In point.
208 To audition this take in the timeline, without actually replacing the current take, you will
enable Resolve’s Take Selector.
6 In the timeline, right-click 03_Dr Sarah_ Wide _Take 1_.mov Subclip and choose Take
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

Selector or choose Clip > Take Selector.

The Take Selector is activated on the selected clip.

The Take Selector acts as a container for multiple clips. While you’ll see only one of
those clips when you play the timeline, you can switch between the clips at any time.
7 From the source viewer, drag the 02_Dr_Sarah_CloseUp.mov Subclip onto the Take 209
Selector clip in the timeline.

Choosing from Multiple Takes

The Take Selector now shows the two clips stacked on top of each other. You can add
as many takes as you want to the Take Selector.
8 From the Subclips bin, double-click the 04_DrSarah_Wide_Take 2_.mov Subclip to
open it in the source viewer.
9 Mark an In point just before Doctor Kaminsky greets her friend with a “Hey.”
10 Mark an Out point when the doctor turns and says, “Yeah?”
210 11 From the source viewer, drag the 04_DrSarah_Wide_Take 2_.mov Subclip onto the
Take Selector clip in the timeline.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

TIP  You can also drag the clip from its bin in the media pool directly into the
Take Selector.

All three takes are now visible in the Take Selector, with the most recently added take
being the active take, but you can change that by clicking the clip you want to view in
the timeline.
 211
TIP  The currently selected take in the Take Selector is actually the clip with
the dullest brightness, thereby matching the other clips in the timeline.

Choosing from Multiple Takes

12 In the Take Selector, click the middle clip in the stack to view it in the timeline.

13 Press the / (slash) key to play over the new take.

This shorter take conforms to the duration of the original take in the timeline. When you
select a take that is shorter or longer than the original clip, you can ripple the timeline
to adjust to the new take’s length.

14 In the upper-right corner of the Take Selector, click the Ripple button.

The timeline adjusts to fit the shorter take’s duration.

212 15 Move the playhead to the start of the clip play to review the rippled timeline.
16 In the Take Selector, click the upper clip to view it in the timeline.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

17 Again, move the playhead to the start of clip and play to review this take.
The director believes that the original wide-angle take introduces the party scene
most effectively, so you’ll make the new take a permanent part of the timeline.
18 In the Take Selector, click the bottom clip to choose that take.

19 In the upper-left corner of the Take Selector, click the Close button to collapse the
Take Selector stack.
 213
TIP  At this point, you can always reopen the Take Selector and continue
reviewing the different takes for this opening shot by double-clicking the Take

Going Beyond the Straight Cut

Selector icon in the lower-left corner of the clip in the timeline.

20 Right-click the clip and choose Finalize Take.

Finalizing the take removes the Take Selector and all the alternate takes from the timeline,
leaving the director’s final choice as a stand-alone clip.

Going Beyond the Straight Cut

A straight cut, with which audio and video start and end simultaneously, can be quite
abrupt and a little jarring. A split edit, often referred to as an L-cut or J-cut because of the
implied shape it creates in the edit, delays either the audio or video cut of a clip. Staggering
the cuts in this way can create a more natural transition between shots.
The most common split edit is the J-cut, with which you first introduce the sound of the
next shot and then cut to the picture a beat or two later. This is the way that most of us
perceive the world around us. For example, when you hear a car horn in the street, you
look for the source of that sound a fraction of a second later.
214 An L-cut leads with the image and then cuts in the audio. It is often used when you want to
show a character’s reaction to something happening or being said.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

In Resolve, you have multiple ways to create J-cuts and L-cuts. Let’s look at a J-cut split edit
in which you hear upcoming clip audio first, and then see the picture.

Extending an Edit
To begin a series of trimming exercises, you will use a timeline with a few edits already
made. This first exercise focuses on a quick and common way to create a split edit using
the playhead as a guide to extend the video or audio of a clip.
1 From the Timeline Viewer drop-down menu, select the 02 Trim Start timeline to load it
into the timeline window.

NOTE  Click the timeline viewer options menu to choose the sort order for the
timeline drop-down menu.

This timeline is a continuation of all the editing you performed in this lesson. It includes
a few additional cuts that you can use to practice some advanced trimming techniques.
2 In the timeline, select the cut at the first white marker at the second and third clips in the 215
timeline, the 03_ Dr Sarah_ Wide. mov Subclip and 05_Wide_ Agents_ Take 1_.mov.

Going Beyond the Straight Cut

This is the end of the Take Selector clip that you recently worked on. Selecting the cut
prepares it for a rolling trim with the green highlight on both sides of the cut.
3 Press the / (slash) key to review this edit.
As the FBI agent introduces himself, it might be better to extend the doctor’s clip so
you can see her reaction. You can do so by positioning the playhead where you want
the video edit to occur.
4 In the timeline, move the playhead to the frame where the male FBI agent begins to
turn his head to introduce his partner.

To move just the video edit and not the audio, you must unlink the audio and video
segments. You can do so by disabling the Link button in the toolbar or with a modifier
click in the timeline.
216 5 Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) the video edit between
03_ Dr Sarah_ Wide. mov Subclip and 05_Wide_ Agents_ Take 1_.mov.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

Option/Alt-clicking is a temporary method for disabling the Link button for a single
click. Now you have the video selected as a rolling trim, and you are ready to extend
the cut to the playhead location.
6 Choose Trim > Extend Edit or press E.

The extend edit moves the selected video edit point to the position of your playhead
in the timeline. In this case, you perform an instant rolling trim and create a split edit.
Press / (slash) to review the new split edit.
That edit now feels very natural in that you see the doctor react to the FBI agent’s
introduction, while the FBI agent’s line of dialogue motivates the picture cut a second
or so later. Let’s use an extend on the other end of the FBI clip.
7 Press the Down Arrow key to move to the second white marker at the end of the FBI shot.
8 Press the / (slash) key to review the edit. 217

Now you will trim this edit so that you see Doctor Kaminsky’s reaction sooner.

Going Beyond the Straight Cut

9 Position the playhead right after the FBI agent says, “We need you to come with us,”
but before he continues saying, “Right away.”

10 Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) the video edit between

05_Wide_ Agents_ Take 1_.mov and 02_Dr_Sarah_Close Up_.mov.

The video is selected as a rolling trim, and you are ready to extend the cut to the
playhead location.
11 Press E to perform the extend edit.
218 The extend edit moves the selected edit point to the position of your playhead in
the timeline.
12 Press / (slash) to review the new split edit.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

Creating simple split edits using the extend edit command is a quick and straightforward
editing technique that is used all the time, not just in dialogue scenes such as this but in
editing across all genres.

Trimming On-the-Fly
The extend edit is a fast trimming style that works with ripple trims as well as rolling trims.
It’s even faster than what you have currently experienced because it can be performed as
you play the timeline. Let’s explore this by working on the next cut in the timeline.
1 Press the Down Arrow twice to move to the third white marker between
02_Dr_Sarah_Close_Up.mov Subclip and 05_Wide_Agents_Take 1_.mov.

2 Press the / (slash) key to review this edit.

This transition has a line that is repeated in both the outgoing and incoming clips. Let’s
remove the line where the doctor says, “Yeah, yeah,” from the outgoing clip, and leave
the impatient FBI reaction shot as it is. Doing so requires a single-sided ripple trim, so
you’ll need to switch to Trim mode and then move the cut selection to the outgoing
side. You can do all that using keyboard shortcuts for added speed.
3 Press the T key to select the Trim mode.
4 Press the U key to change the trim selection from a rolling trim to a single-sided 219
incoming ripple trim.

Trimming On-the-Fly
The U key is a three-way toggle that cycles through the trim selection states: rolling
trim, single-sided ripple trim from the incoming clip, and single-sided ripple trim for the
outgoing clip. Currently, the incoming side is selected, but pressing the U key again
still selects the outgoing side of the cut.
5 Press the U key a second time to select the outgoing side of the cut.

6 Under the timeline viewer, click the Loop button, or press Command-/ (slash) in macOS
or Ctrl-/ (slash) in Windows.

With loop activated, Resolve continuously plays whichever playback option you
choose. To loop play over the trim point, play the selection.
7 To review the edit, press / (slash) to loop play the selection.
8 While looping in the timeline, press the E key to mark a new Out point after the doctor
turns to face her friend but before she says, “Yeah, yeah.”
220 9 Let the selection loop play a few times and modify the edit by pressing either , (comma)
to remove a single frame from the tail or . (period) to add a single frame to the tail.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

10 When you feel the edit is right, press Spacebar to stop playback.
The rhythmic beats of your audio and the associated sound edits contribute significantly
to the pacing and mood of a scene. Trimming on-the-fly is one way to realize the most
natural and organic feel with that rhythm.
To continue practicing trimming on-the-fly with this cut, you’ll bring the video cut back
a bit to see a little more of the FBI agent’s reaction and make the selection in the
timeline using keyboard shortcuts.
11 Press U to cycle the selection until both sides of the cut are selected, as indicated by
the green highlight.
12 Press Option-U (macOS) or Alt-U (Windows) to select only the video track for trimming.

Just as pressing the U key toggles the side of the cut to trim, pressing Option/Alt-U
toggles through the tracks to trim.
13 To loop playback, press / (slash).
14 After the doctor says, “Sure,” press the E key to roll the video edit back a second or so
to create an L-cut.
15 Let the selection loop a few more times and modify the edit by pressing either 221
, (comma) to roll the edit back one frame or . (period) to roll it forward one frame.

Putting Yourself to the Test

16 Press the Spacebar when you have finished perfecting your edit.
17 In the toolbar, select the Selection tool or press A.
By this point, you should understand that J-cuts and L-cuts are all about keeping the edit
flowing seamlessly. Offsetting the audio or video cuts from each other even slightly allows
you to keep the dialogue moving forward while giving the audience a peek at the reaction
of other characters, thereby helping to knit together the whole edit.

Putting Yourself to the Test

The next two white markers in the timeline are cuts that also need refinement. Using the
keyboard shortcut methods you just learned, see if you can make smooth split edits with
these two cuts.
Here are some simple instructions to follow:
1 Move the playhead down to the fourth white marker.
2 Press the V key to select the cut.
3 Review this edit.
4 Use keyboard shortcuts to select the video track and extend the FBI agents after the
doctor says, “My help?”
5 Use keyboard shortcuts to move to the next edit.
6 Review this edit.
This edit requires two changes:
7 Ripple trim the incoming FBI agent shot to remove the audio of the doctor speaking.
8 Extend the incoming doctor shot after the FBI agent says, “OK.”
222
Dynamic Trim Mode
Extending a cut on-the-fly is just one way to trim while playing over an edit. Enabling
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

Dynamic Trim Mode allows you to use the familiar JKL keys that you have probably been
using to play forward and backward through the timeline.
1 Move the playhead down to the sixth white marker.

TIP  You can use the keyboard shortcut Shift-Down Arrow to move to the next
marker or Shift-Up Arrow to move to the previous marker.

2 Press the V key to select the video and audio of the nearest edit.

3 Press / (slash) to review this edit.

For this edit, the director wants to remove the first two lines of the FBI agent. The
director would like this clip to start when the FBI agent says, “I need you to tell me
everything about the Syncs.” This also, helpfully, loses a rather awkward step forward
that Agent Jenkins performs at this moment.
4 Press the U key until the incoming side of the current edit is selected.
5 Press T to enable Trim Edit mode, if necessary.
6 In the toolbar, click the Dynamic Edit mode button, or press W.

When Dynamic Trim Mode is enabled, your familiar keyboard shortcuts now change.
If you’ve been using Spacebar to start/stop playback, this now becomes the equivalent
to the Play Around Current Frame function, while J and L now adjust the edit point in
real time!
7 Press and hold the K then L keys together to begin trimming slowly forward until the 223
FBI agent finishes his second line, “Because it is happening.”
Pressing the K and L keys together trims while playing half-speed forward.

Dynamic Trim Mode

8 Press Spacebar to review the edit. Adjust if necessary by holding K and L or J,
depending on whether you want to trim forward or backward.

TIP  If you want to trim a frame at a time, the familiar , (comma) and . (period)
shortcuts will continue to work. Alternatively, you can hold down K and
tap J or L.

All the trimming functions you are used to, such as slip and slide, are available to you
in Dynamic Trim mode.
9 Press the Down Arrow to move to the last cut in the timeline.

To make this ending shot more dramatic and lead the audience into the next scene,
let’s move the last shot of the sync robot so it appears over the FBI agent saying, “We
need to know everything.” One way to do so is to slide the last clip back over the FBI
agent video. You can easily do so using keyboard shortcuts to select the entire clip,
and then slide it back using Dynamic Edit mode.
224 10 Press Shift-V to select the entire clip instead of just the edit point.
When a clip is selected, the toolbar button for the Dynamic Edit mode changes to show
you whether you’re in Slip or Slide mode.
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

11 Tap the S key until the Dynamic Edit mode button in the toolbar becomes a slide icon.

TIP  You can also right-click the Dynamic Trim button to choose between Slip
and Slide.

12 Press the J and K keys together to slide the last clip back until the FBI agent begins to
say, “We need to know everything.” If you go too far back, press the K and L keys to
slide the clip forward.

13 Press Spacebar to review the edit.

14 When you are done with the change, press the W key to disable Dynamic Edit mode
and press the A key to return to the Selection tool.
While this lesson has been about editing dialogue, its underlying theme is continuity.
Continuity editing involves matching screen direction, position, and temporal relations from
shot to shot. The extend edit, trimming on-the-fly, applying ripple overwrite editing, and
using the Take Selector are just a few of the many Resolve features that support this single
most important principle of editing.
Lesson Review 225

1 What methods can you use to create a subclip from a marked duration of a clip in the

Lesson Review
edit page?
a) Drag the clip from the source viewer to the media pool.
b) Press Option-B (macOS) or Alt-B (Windows).
c) c) In the source viewer options menu, choose Make Subclip.
2 What do the preview marks on the timeline indicate?
a) They show where you can add markers.
b) They help determine where clips will be placed when making three-point edits.
c) They show where text and graphics will align on the timeline viewer.
3 True or False? Ripple Overwrite is a three-point edit.
4 True or False? To extend a cut on-the-fly while playing you must enable Dynamic
Edit mode.
5 True or False? All clips in the Take Selector should have the same duration.
226
Answers
1 a) and b) You can create subclips by choosing Mark > Create Subclip, and right-clicking
Lesson 4  Cutting a Dialogue Scene

the source viewer jog bar; then choose Create Subclip, press Option-B (macOS) or
Alt-B (Windows), or drag the subclip from the source viewer into the media pool.
2 b) Preview marks help you determine where clips will be placed whenever you execute
a three-point edit.
3 False. Ripple Overwrite is a four-point edit that you use when the duration of the
marked source clip is different from the duration marked in the timeline, and when you
want the timeline to ripple to accommodate the difference in duration.
4 False. To use JKL keys to trim, you must enable Dynamic Edit mode. Extend edit while
playing is always available.
5 False. The Take Selector can contain clips of different durations. When switching
between these clips, you can enable the Ripple Take button in the upper-right corner
(to the left of the trash can button).
Lesson 5

Multicamera Editing

Multiple cameras running simultaneously are Time

used for many types of productions, including This lesson takes approximately
60 minutes to complete.
music videos and reality programming.

The cut page enables one way to edit Goals

multicamera productions, with its Source Starting a Multicamera Project 228
Overwrite editing function. Meanwhile, the Switching Angles in the Timeline 237
edit page uses a more traditional multicamera Editing a Multicamera Music Video 244
editing workflow. Real-Time Multicamera Editing 252
Both pages allow you to initially synchronize Adjusting the Multicamera Edit 260
multiple clips and then easily manage and Adjusting a Multicam Clip 262
edit between different camera angles without
Lesson Review 267
any further concern about sync issues.
However, the edit page provides a bit more
flexibility when it comes to naming and
ordering camera angles, as well as enabling
switching and even color grading.

In this lesson, you’ll explore the power of

multicamera functionality in the edit page and
learn how to solve some common challenges.
228
Starting a Multicamera Project
Accurately establishing the sync relationship between multiple camera angles is critical for
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

a successful multicamera edit in the edit page.

1 Open Resolve, and in the Project Manager, right-click and choose Import Project.
2 Navigate to R17 Editing > Lessons > Lesson 05 Multicam > DR17 EDITING LESSON 05
MULTICAM.drp and choose Open. Double-click the new project to open it.
3 If necessary, switch to the edit page and relink the media files.
This project contains footage from two separate shoots; the first is the interview with
Sasha from Citizen Chain Cyclery; the second is a music video shoot for the band
Jitterbug Riot.
You will concentrate on editing the different multicamera setups for each of these
separate events, concentrating on each in turn.
4 In the media pool bin list pop-up menu, choose the Red bin option.

This hides the Blue colored bin in the bin list, as you are not interested in the band
footage just yet.
5 In the timeline, review the current edit Citizen Chain Multicam_START. 229

This rough edit provides a useful introduction to Sasha’s interview.

Starting a Multicamera Project

6 Click the Full Extent Zoom button in the timeline toolbar.

NOTE  The Full Extent Zoom function will always display the whole of the
current timeline in the edit page, similar to the functionality of the cut page’s
upper timeline.

The director wants the interview to start after the camera has panned to the Citizen
Chain shop sign at the end of the third clip.
7 Position your timeline playhead on the edit point between Store_Front_MS.mov and
Rosebud_Sticker.mov.
8 In the media pool, select the Interviews bin and review the footage.

This bin contains two interview clips with Sasha in which he explains the inspiration for
the business’s name. It’s a nice story, but the director would like it to flow a little better.
Thankfully, because this interview was shot on more than one camera, you can cut
between the different cameras instead of adding B-roll cutaways to cover jump cuts or
patching the interview with the Smooth Cut transition.
However, before you start editing this interview, you need to sync the clips.
230 9 In the media pool, right-click the Interviews bin and choose Create Timeline Using
Selected Bin.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

10 In the New Timeline window, name this timeline Sasha Interview, deselect Use
Selected Mark In/Out, and click Create.
 A new timeline is added to the Interview bin and automatically opens in the timeline. 231

Starting a Multicamera Project

11 In the timeline, select Interview_01_CAM02.mov and drag it anywhere above the
previous clip.

12 In the timeline, select both clips, and then choose Clip > Auto Align Clips > Based
on Waveform.

TIP  Alternatively, you can right-click the selected clips and choose Auto Align
Clips > Based on Waveform.
232 After a brief analysis, Resolve correctly synchronizes the two clips in the timeline.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

You now need to convert the Sasha Interview timeline into a special multicam clip.
13 In the Interviews bin, right-click the Sasha Interview timeline and choose Convert
Timeline to Multicam Clip.
 The timeline closes (as it’s no longer a timeline), and its bin icon changes to that of a 233
multicam clip.

Starting a Multicamera Project

You are now ready to insert this interview into the main timeline and start editing between
the different angles.

Viewing the Multicam Clip

You can work with a multicam clip just like any other source clip. However, because it
contains both angles in a single clip, you can switch between the two shots at any time.
1 Double-click the Sasha Interview multicam clip to open it in the source viewer.

Because this is a multicam clip, Resolve automatically displays both angles side-by-
side. The angle with the red outline represents the currently active angle—the angle
that you will see and hear.

NOTE  The names of these angles are “Video 1” and “Video 2” because these
were the names of the video tracks in the original timeline. You will learn how
to rename angles later in this lesson.
234 2 Play the multicam clip in the source viewer. Both angles should be in sync.
3 In the source viewer, set an In point just before Sasha says, “I was a big fan of Orson
Welles” (around 01:00:07:00).
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

TIP  If you wish to display waveform overlays in the source viewer as you have
done in previous lessons, simply enable this option in the Source Viewer
Options menu before opening the multicam clip.

4 Set an Out point after Sasha says “…we found out that Rosebud was really a bicycle“
(around 01:00:27:00).
 235
NOTE  The source timecodes referred to in this exercise are the timecode
values for the original timeline that this multicam clip was created from, not the

Starting a Multicamera Project

timecode for the actual source clips inside the multicam clip.

5 Press F9 to Insert or click the Insert Clip button in the timeline toolbar (or however
you prefer to perform an Insert edit) to insert this multicam clip into the timeline at the
playhead position.

When you play this multicam clip in the timeline, you’ll see only the currently active angle.
The second angle is hidden.

Refining the Radio Edit

Now that you have the interview in the timeline, you can start to edit to improve the flow of
Sasha’s storytelling. First, you’ll have to remove a couple of distracting “umms” and “ahhhs.”
Then, you’ll want to tighten up the last part of the interview.
1 In the timeline, play through the interview until just after Sasha says, “I was a big fan of
Orson Welles”. Press I to add and In point.
236 2 Continue to play through the interview until just before Sasha says “…I appreciated the
pun....” Press O to add an Out point.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

3 Press Shift-Delete (or Backspace) to ripple delete the marked section.

4 Press / (slash) to preview the edit.
By now, this process should be second nature to you.
5 Continue playing the timeline and use the same technique to remove the “ummm”
a few seconds later, after he says, “Citizen Chain, Citizen Kane,” and before he says,
“And only after we named the shop...”
6 Set another In point after he says, “It was only after we named the shop,” and place an
Out point just before he says, “We found out that Rosebud was really a bicycle.” Again,
ripple delete this section of the interview to tighten up the punchline of the story.

NOTE  There is an additional “Ummm” you may want to take out just before
Sasha says “Citzen Chain, Citizen Kane.” Consider this an extra credit exercise
you could remove yourself once you’re comfortable with editing
multicamera footage.
 237

Switching Angles in the Timeline

At this point, the director is satisfied that your new cut has engaged the audience
sufficiently.
7 Return your playhead to the start of the interview and click Play to listen to this radio edit.

NOTE  Remember, at this stage you are listening to ensure that the interview
sounds right and contains no obviously distracting audio edits. If you need to
adjust any edits, use the techniques you learned in Lesson 3 to ripple trim the
edit points to suit yourself.

Once you have the radio edit working to your satisfaction, you’re ready to put the additional
angle of your multicam clip to work.

Switching Angles in the Timeline

Not all multicamera edits must done on-the-fly, cutting between angles in real time as the
footage races past. You can switch between the different angles within a multicam clip
at any time.
1 In the Citizen Chain Multicam_START timeline, place the playhead on the edit
between the first and second multicam clips.

TIP  You can identify a multicam clip in the timeline by the little box icon next
to the name of the clip.
238 2 Press / (slash) to review the cut.
Ouch! You’ll no doubt agree that this is a rather nasty jump cut.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

3 Right-click the first multicam clip in the timeline and choose Switch Multicam Clip
Angle > Video 2.

4 Press / (slash) to review the new edit.

5 In the timeline, right-click the third multicam clip and choose Switch Multicamera Clip
Angle > Video 2.

NOTE  The above techniques will switch the video part of the multicam clip
in the timeline. If you want or need to switch the audio, right-click the audio
clip and choose Switch Multicam Clip Angle where you will find the audio
angles available.

6 Return to the start of the multicam clips in the timeline and review the changes you’ve
just made.
Utilizing Split Edits 239

Now that you have the interview sitting amid the rest of the footage, and utilizing the

Switching Angles in the Timeline

different angles, it’s time to begin finessing how you may move into an out of the interview.
1 Press Shift-Command-L (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-L (Windows) or click the Linked Selection
toolbar button to disable your timeline’s Linked Selection feature.

2 Press T to enter Trim Edit mode or click the Trim Edit mode toolbar button.

To begin with, you will adjust the cut between the interview and the last clip in
the timeline.
3 Select the outgoing video edit between the fourth multicam clip and
Rosebud_Sticker.mov.

4 Trim the video edit back slightly to create an L-cut.

5 Press / (slash) to preview the selected edit.
That simple change has created a nice split edit that helps to soften the end of the
interview going back into the B-Roll footage.
Now you’ll turn your attention to the incoming part of the interview.
6 Select the incoming side of the first multicam clip video.
240 7 Trim the selection forward until you reach the end of the first multicam clip.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

Resolve allows you to trim a clip to zero frames, effectively removing it. If you want to
trim further into the next clip, you’ll need to reselect the edit.
8 Reselect the incoming video of the next multicam clip.
If you continue to trim forward from this point, you will trim the underlying audio
backward, overwriting the previous audio clip just as you encountered in a previous
exercise in Lesson 1. In that exercise, you had to disable the Auto Track Selector
control for the track; unfortunately, however, that won’t work here. Instead, you will
perform an asymmetric trim—that is, a trim applied to two separate edit points in
different directions! Don’t worry, it sounds much more complex than it is.
9 With the incoming video still selected, Command-Click (macOS) or Ctrl-Click (Windows) 241
the outgoing part of the gap before the first audio clip left of the interview.
10 Click and hold the incoming video edit and trim the video edit forward by about 1.15

Switching Angles in the Timeline

(using the small, flat part of the audio waveform as a guide). At the same time, notice
that the audio edit is trimmed backward, thereby maintaining the sync between the
different audio and video clips!

TIP  You can also use the , (comma) and . (period) keys to finesse this edit further.

11 Press / (slash) to preview the selected edits and marvel at your newly created split!

NOTE  While asymmetric trims like this are rare, knowing how you can make
complex selections when trimming in the timeline is a key step in mastering
the trimming functionality available in Resolve.

With the beginning and end of this interview now nicely intercut with the B-Roll
footage, you can apply a couple more tiny split edits to help smooth the cuts between
the different cameras.
242 12 Ensure that you are still in Trim Edit mode, and then click and drag from an empty part
of the timeline across the two edits between the three remaining multicam clips.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

The edits are automatically selected as rolling trims.

13 Press , (comma) three or four times to roll back the video edits a few frames to create
two small L-cuts.

14 Press / (slash) once more to review the selected edits.

The slight offset of the video edit from the audio edit softens the edit, making it a little
less jarring.
15 Review each of these edits, and if necessary adjust the spilt edits as necessary.
Offsetting the edits even one or two frames can make a big improvement in the way
the edits are perceived.

TIP  Remember, you don’t always have to roll the edit backward to create an
L-cut. A cut might work better if you roll the video edit forward to create a J-cut.
16 When you have finished, select all the multicam clips in your timeline (both audio and 243
video). Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Flatten Multicam Clip.

Switching Angles in the Timeline

NOTE  Flattening a multicam clip in the timeline removes all the additional
angles and leaves the active angle in its place as a normal timeline clip. Once
you have flattened a multicam clip, you will no longer be able to switch to the
alternate angles.

By shooting this interview with more than one camera, you can cut the interview effectively
without having to paint it entirely with B-Roll or rely on the Smooth Cut transition.

Reviewing the Finished Timeline

If you wish to view finished versions of this edit created using the steps detailed in this lesson,
choose File > Import Timeline > Import AAF, XML, DRT, ADL and navigate to R17 Editing/
Lessons/Lesson 05 Multicam/Citizen Chain Multicam Finished.drt.
244
Editing a Multicamera Music Video
For the next multicamera exercise, you will concentrate on editing a live music video, which
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

will enable you to explore some of the more in-depth features of multicam editing in the
edit page.
1 In the Bin List pop-up menu, choose to display the Blue-tagged bins.

The Citizen Chain bins are hidden since they are color-tagged as Red, and the Blue
color-tagged Jitterbug Riot bin is displayed.

You will begin this exercise by creating a new, empty timeline.

2 With the Jitterbug Riot bin selected, press Command-N (macOS) or Ctrl-N (Windows) to
create a new timeline.
3 In the New Timeline window, name your timeline Miserable Girl EDIT—the title of the 245
song the band is performing—and click Create.

Editing a Multicamera Music Video

The new timeline is added to the bin.
4 Select the Miserable Girl bin and review the footage.

This bin contains eight separate video clips of the band performing their song. Each of
the video clips has guide audio of various quality recorded on the in-camera
microphones. A separate .wav audio file contains a clean, mixed version of the track
that the band is performing.
5 Ensure that the clips are sorted by Clip Name in the bin and select JBR_01.mov
in the bin.
246 6 Open the Inspector and select the File tab.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

The File Inspector displays some commonly used metadata for the selected clip.

NOTE  This tab in the Inspector is not customizable but is a convenient

location. The comprehensive metadata view is in the Metadata panel.

Notice that this clip has Camera metadata identifying it as “01” in the File Inspector.
7 At the bottom of the File Inspector, click the Next Clip button. 247

The next clip in the bin, JBR_02.mov, is selected and its metadata is displayed in the
File Inspector.

Editing a Multicamera Music Video

Notice that this clip has Camera metadata identifying it as “08.” Other cameras are
similarly identified with different Camera metadata.
248 8 In the bin, select Miserable Girl Final Mix.aif.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

9 Again, notice that this audio-only clip has Camera metadata identifying it as “MUSIC.”
Creating the Multicam Clip 249

As in the previous exercise, the first step in editing multicamera footage on the edit page is

Editing a Multicamera Music Video

to create a multicam clip of the synchronized clips.
1 In the bin list, right-click the Miserable Girl bin and choose Create New Multicam Clip
Using Selected Bin.

NOTE  You can also create a new multicam clip from individually selected
clips instead of an entire bin.
250 The New Multicam Clip window opens in which you can select how Resolve will
synchronize the clips and create the multicam clip.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

2 In the Multicam Clip Name field, type Miserable Girl SYNC.

3 In the Angle Sync pop-up, choose Sound.
Selecting Sound synchronizes the clips based on their audio content similar to the way
you synced the interview clips in the previous exercise and the dual system clips
in Lesson 2.

NOTE  Other options for synchronizing multicam clips include using existing In
or Out points and matching timecode or markers.

4 Change the Angle Name menu to Metadata – Camera.

NOTE  The Angle Name option dictates the order in which the angles are
sorted. When you choose Sequential, Resolve labels the angles and sorts
them as Angle 1, Angle 2, and so on, based on their starting timecode values,
with the earliest timecode becoming the first angle. Choosing Clip Name sorts
the clip names in ascending alphanumeric order and labels the angles
appropriately. Similarly, choosing Metadata – Angle or Metadata – Camera
sorts the clips based on information in their respective metadata fields.
5 Ensure that the option Move Source Clips to ‘Original Clips’ Bin is selected. 251

Editing a Multicamera Music Video

6 Click Create to create the multicam clip.
Resolve analyzes the clips’ audio and creates the new multicam clip in the
selected bin.

A new bin also appears called Original Clips that contains the individual camera
source clips.
252
Real-Time Multicamera Editing
The fun aspect of working with a multicamera edit in the edit page is that you can cut
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

between the different cameras in real time as if you were sitting in the live studio in front of
a switcher. Often, this will save you hours because you can cut the material in the time it
takes to play the timeline.
1 Double-click the Miserable Girl SYNC multicam clip to open it in the source viewer.

The multicam clip appears in the source viewer and displays each of the nine different
clips—or angles—as a separate box, each displaying the appropriate Camera metadata
information. This view organizes the angles from left to right and from top to bottom.
So, the first angle (in this case JBR_01.mov is identified as CAM_01) appears in the
upper-left window and the ninth angle (Miserable Girl Final Mix.aif and identified as
MUSIC) appears in the lower-right window. Notice that the angles’ names have
inherited the Camera metadata information.
 253
NOTE  If the playhead is at the start of the multicam clip, you will see blank
frames for most of the angles because not all the cameras began rolling at the

Real-Time Multicamera Editing

same time. Simply move the playhead to later in the multicam clip to see the
footage for all the angles.

2 Play the mutlicam clip in the source viewer to verify that all the angles are in sync.
Because Camera 01, in the upper-right quadrant of the viewer, is selected by default,
that is the angle that you will hear when you begin playing the clip.
3 Set an In point just before the music starts (around 01:00:19:00).

4 Perform an overwrite edit to edit this clip into the empty Miserable Girl EDIT timeline.
5 Click the Media Pool and Inspector buttons to hide the respective panels and give
yourself a little more space to view the multicamera footage in all its glory.
6 Click the Full Extent Zoom button in the timeline toolbar to display the entire timeline
and adjust the size of the timeline window.
254 7 Press Home to return the playhead to the start of the timeline.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

In the timeline viewer, only the first angle, Camera 01, is displayed because that is the
active camera. To be able to effectively switch camera angles and keep the source
viewer in sync with the timeline clip, you need to enable multicam mode for the
source viewer.
8 In the source viewer mode pop-up menu, choose Multicam to display the
multicam viewer.
 Enabling multicam mode replaces the transport controls under the viewer with 255
multicam-related controls. Transport controls are no longer necessary because moving
the timeline playhead will also move the source clips in the multicam viewer so they

Real-Time Multicamera Editing

maintain their synced relationship.

9 Play the timeline and see how the different angles in the multicamera viewer play in
sync with the timeline viewer.
256 10 In the timeline, right-click the audio for the multicam clip and choose Switch Multicam
Clip Angle > Camera MUSIC.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

The audio for the multicam clip is changed so that it plays the audio from the
Miserable Girl Final Mix.aif file. The multicam viewer also displays a green box around
the MUSIC angle to indicate that this is the currently active audio.
11 In the timeline, right-click the video for the multicam clip and choose Switch Multicam 257
Clip Angle To > Camera 04.

Real-Time Multicamera Editing

The video in the timeline viewer updates to display the video clip for Angle 4, and the
multicam viewer now also displays a blue box around the same angle to denote that
this is the currently active video angle.

You will now tell Resolve that you want to edit only the video from this multicam clip, as
you do not want to edit between the different audio from the different cameras.
In the source viewer below the multicam clip, three buttons control which parts of this
multicam clip cut when you switch angle: video, video and sound, or sound only.
258 12 Click the Video button to the left to edit only the video of this multicam clip.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

Now for the fun part…

13 With the playhead at the start of the timeline, start playing, and begin clicking each of
the video clips in the source viewer to cut between the angles of the multicam clip in
real time. As you do so, you will see the edit points appear in the timeline as you cut
between the angles. Keep going until you reach the end of the timeline.

NOTE  You can also press the 1, 2, and 3 keys along the top of your keyboard
to cut between the angles instead of clicking on the boxes in the multicam
source viewer.

14 Once you have reached the end of the song, return the playhead to the start of the
timeline, and click Play to review your multicamera masterpiece!
How cool is that?
Unfortunately, while it’s great fun, this first attempt at a real-time multicamera edit will
probably not result in a perfect edit. It’s very rare that you would cut to the exact angle at
exactly the right time on your first try.
Instead, think of this as your rough cut, which you will now need to refine.
 259
Multicamera Editing Techniques
When editing multicamera material like this, do not try to make every cut perfect on this first

Real-Time Multicamera Editing

pass. Instead, try to get a feel for the pacing of the music and the different angles you have to
work with. It can be useful to watch the multicam clip back a few times before making a single
cut. When you do start editing, try to make cuts according to when you feel they work best with
the music and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. You will learn how to refine the edit further in
the next steps.

If you find it difficult to concentrate on so many angles at once, it is often useful to reduce the
number of angles you are viewing at any one time. In this case, click the Multicam Display
pop-up menu in the bottom-right of the multicam source viewer and choose an option such as
“2x2.” This option displays only the first four angles of the multicam clip, with the other angles
then available on different “pages,” which can be accessed using the Multicam page buttons
that now appear.

By reducing the initial number of angles you’re working with, you may find it easier to begin
your multicamera edit. You can then introduce the other angles once you have the initial rough
cut down.

You can use metadata (as you have done here) to identify the most important clips as angles 1
through 4 (or see the section “Adjusting a Multicam Clip” later in this lesson), and then order
your clips appropriately when you create your own multicam clips.
260
Adjusting the Multicamera Edit
Now that you have completed your rough cut, when you review it, you may notice two
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

common issues: you’ve made a cut at the wrong time, or you’ve cut to the wrong angle.
Even worse, it could be both issues at the same time!
Fear not. You’re not directing live television here; this is post-production, so you can
change your mind before anyone has seen your previous “creative choices.” Solving the
first issue where you cut at the wrong time is easy. You already know how to change an
existing cut point by simply performing a rolling trim using any number of techniques.
The second issue, where you use the wrong angle, is just as easy to fix by switching angles
in the source viewer.

TIP  When working with a multicamera edit, you need to be very mindful of the sync
between the angles. For this reason, it’s probably not advisable to begin rippling,
slipping, or sliding shots until you are confident that you have mastered those edits.

1 In the timeline, play your multicam edit until you see a shot you want to change, and
then stop playback.
As the edit plays, the source viewer will also update because in Multicam mode the
source viewer is automatically ganged to the timeline playhead position.
2 In the multicam viewer, Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) a different image
to switch the active angle to the new angle.
 When you’re switching the active angle, the mouse pointer changes to a replace 261
edit icon.
It’s just as easy to add further cuts to your multicam edit, too.

Adjusting the Multicamera Edit

3 In the timeline, move the playhead to the middle of one of the multicam clips, and in
the source viewer, click any other angle.

A new edit point appears at the playhead position in the timeline and changes the rest
of the multicam clip after the cut to the new active angle.

TIP  Pressing the number keys at the top of your keyboard (1, 2, 3, and so on)
makes a cut at the playhead position in the timeline. Holding down Option
(macOS) or Alt (Windows) and pressing a number key switches the multicam
clip angle at the playhead position in the timeline. You can perform either of
these operations during playback or when the playhead is stationary.

Excellent. Now you have a real taste of how much fun multicamera editing is, and how it
works in Resolve. But before you start making further adjustments to this edit, you will look
at other ways you can adjust the multicam clip itself.
262
Adjusting a Multicam Clip
Although the multicamera clip appears as one segment in the timeline, it is actually a type
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

of container timeline, which is very similar to a compound clip. You will work more with
compound clips in Lesson 7, but for now, it’s useful to know that you can open a multicam
clip in its own timeline when you need to make changes, such as changing the order of the
angles or an angle’s name.
1 In the Timeline View Options pop-up menu, select Stacked Timelines.

The timelines you worked on across this project now open as individual tabs.
2 Select any of the multicam clips in the timeline and choose Clip > Open in Timeline
or right-click any of the Miserable Girl SYNC multicam clips and choose Open
in Timeline.
The multicam clip opens in its own tabbed timeline.

TIP  To view such a large number of timeline tracks effectively, click the
Timeline View Options button and reduce the Video and Audio Track Heights
to their minimum. You may also need to drag the line between the viewers
and the toolbar area upward to make the timeline area much larger.
 You can see how Resolve has structured and organized the multicam clip; it is very 263
similar to the way you arranged the clips of Sasha’s interview in the timeline before
creating the first multicam clip in this lesson. The organization is simple: any content

Adjusting a Multicam Clip

on the video and audio 1 tracks is displayed as the first angle in the multicam viewer.
If content is present on the video and/or audio 2 tracks, it is displayed as angle 2, and
so on. Notice that the track names follow the names of the angles as displayed in the
Multicam source viewer.

NOTE  Notice how the V9 track is empty. This is because the

Miserable Girl Final Mix.aif audio occupies the A9 track, meaning that the
music for this edit is available as Angle 9.

You will now add an additional angle and change the order of the angles in this
multicam clip.
3 Right-click any of the timeline video track headers and choose Add Angle.

A new angle is added, V10 and A10.

4 Open the media pool and select the Extra Angle bin.

A tenth, currently unused angle is in this bin called JBR_09.mov.

264 5 Drag the JBR_09.mov clip into the new V10 in the multicam clip timeline.
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

You will now need to sync this new angle to the other angles in this multicam
clip timeline.
6 Ensure that Link Selection is enabled, and then select the clip on V10/A10 and any
other clip in the timeline.

7 Right-click on any of the video clips and choose Auto Align Clips > Based
on Waveform.
 Resolve instantly syncs the new angle to the existing angles! 265

Adjusting a Multicam Clip

You will now rename the new angle to ensure that you keep your multicam clip
organized and tidy.
8 Right-click the track header for V10 and choose Move Angle Down.

Instantly, Resolves Changes the order of angles V10 and V9, as well as A10 and A9.
9 Increase the height of V9 slightly and notice that this angle is still named Camera 10.
10 Click the angle name and type Camera 09 in keeping with the other angle names for
this multicam clip.

Now you can start to use this new angle in your multicamera edit.
11 Select the timeline tab for the Miserable Girl Edit timeline to switch back to the main
timeline for this edit.
12 In the source viewer pop-up menu, choose Multicam to switch the source viewer to the
multicam viewer.
266 13 In the Multicam view pop-up, choose 4x4 to view all ten angles in the multicam clip
(plus space for up to six additional angles, which are not currently in use).
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

NOTE  4x4 is the maximum number of angles that can be viewed at any one
time, even though your multicam clips can contain an unlimited number of
angles. Any more than the 16 angles that this option can display will be found
in subsequent multicam “pages.”

14 Finally, watch your multicam edit through again, making any further adjustments you
think are necessary. Don’t forget to include the new camera angle and flatten the
multicam clips once you have finished!

Reviewing the Finished Timeline

If you wish to view finished versions of this edit created using the steps detailed in this lesson,
choose File > Import Timeline > Import AAF, XML, DRT, ADL and navigate to R17 Editing/
Lessons/Lesson 05 Multicam. Here you will find two versions of the finished timeline;
MISERABLE GIRL FINISHED.drt is an edited version that you can use to practice your
multicamera editing skills. This timeline will also import the associated multicam clip used
in this edit. MISERABLE GIRL FINISHED_FLATTENED.drt is the same edit but has been
flattened so the alternative angles are no longer available.
Congratulations! You should now have the skills necessary to tackle even the most 267
complex multicamera editing tasks in DaVinci Resolve’s edit page. Remember, cutting
footage shot on multiple cameras is one example of the type of editing that you can do in

Lesson Review
both the edit and cut pages, though both pages have their own approaches to syncing and
editing the clips together. Of course, you’re free to choose whichever workflow you find
most appropriate!
Nevertheless, when editing multicamera projects and playing back in real time, you
are really trying to assess the rhythms and themes of the music and capture those
characteristics as you are cutting. Sometimes you might cut a multicam clip in three or
four ways to experiment with various pacing strategies and later decide which one is
showing the most love, but as with all editing, each cut requires constant revisiting and
reworking to ensure that your audience is watching the best possible results.

Lesson Review
1 What options do you have for synchronizing angles in a multicam clip from video clips
without sound?
a) In or Out points
b) Markers
c) Timecode
2 What is the maximum number of angles you can view simultaneously in a
multicam clip?
a) 16
b) 18
c) 28
3 What modifier key is held down to switch the entire multicam clip to another angle
instead of adding a new edit point?
a) Command (macOS) or Ctrl (Windows)
b) Option (macOS) or Alt (Windows)
c) Shift
4 True or False? You cannot change the angle names, add additional angles to, or
change the current order of the angles of an existing multicam clip.
5 True or False? When you choose to flatten a multicam clip, you lose all the other
synchronized angles.
268
Answers
1 a), b), and c) You can choose to synchronize angles using In points, Out points,
Lesson 5  Multicamera Editing

timecode, or markers instead of sound.

2 a) 16. You can have multiple pages of more angles, but the maximum number of angles
you can view in any one page is 16 (4x4).
3 b) Option-click (macOS) or Alt-click (Windows) an angle to switch the existing angle.
4 False. Right-click a multicam clip and choose Open in Timeline to adjust an existing
multicam clip.
5 True. Flattening a multicam clip removes all the unused angles and leaves only the clip
that was used in the active angle in the timeline.
Lesson 6

Faster Editing in the

Cut Page with the
Speed Editor
Throughout this book, you’ve learned how to Time
leverage the powerful tools of DaVinci This lesson takes approximately
60 minutes to complete.
Resolve 17’s edit page for your editing tasks.
But the edit page is just one environment Goals
where you can edit video footage. The other, Setting Up the Project 270
of course, is the cut page. Cut Page Overview 271
Speed Editor Overview 274
The cut page isn’t merely a simplified
Sorting the Media Pool 278
interface for those inexperienced at editing. Viewing Clips Using Source Tape 283
Rather, its focus is on enabling you to cut Navigating Using the Speed Editor 292
footage together quickly, with the emphasis Rough Cutting the Opening Shots 295
leaning away from the minutia of the edit Splitting, Deleting, and Moving Clips 298
Trimming Using the Speed Editor 301
page and toward a slick, intuitive reviewing
Adding the Soundbites 304
and ordering of clips. This approach is not
Adding an Audio-Only Soundbite 309
only useful for people who may need to edit Syncing the Second Camera 310
footage together very fast (such as news Using the Sync Bin 313
editors or social media vloggers) but also for Adding Close-Ups 319
anyone who wants to be able to review their Adding Cutaways 322
Adding Graphics and Transitions 327
footage and start editing almost as fast as
Adding Music and Adjusting
they can think. Audio Levels 329
Extra Credit 333
Randomized Multicamera Fun 334
Lesson Review 337
270 Moreover, the cut page has its own unique approach to many of the common editing tasks
that have already been covered in this book, such as organizing source clips, choosing the
best clips, and even multicamera editing.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

And remember, the Edit and cut pages are not mutually exclusive, so it’s never a matter of
you ever having to choose one over the other. As with all pages in DaVinci Resolve, you
can move freely from one to the other and back again at any time, enabling you to utilize
the best page for the task at hand.

Setting Up the Project

To start this lesson, you will restore an existing project archive (.dra) to your Project
Manager. This project contains a version of the Citizen Chain media that you are already
familiar with and which you will cut together into a simple 1-minute promo, suitable for use
on social media.
1 If necessary, open DaVinci Resolve, and in the Project Manager, right-click an empty
space and choose Import Project.
2 Navigate to R17 Editing/Lessons/Lesson 06 Cut Page and Speed Editor.
3 Select the R17 EDITING LESSON 06 Pt1.drp project file and click Open to import the
project into the Project Manager.
4 Double-click the R17 EDITING LESSON 06 Pt1 project to open it and relink the media.
If necessary, click the Cut Page button or press Shift-3 to switch to the cut page.
You’re now ready to begin exploring editing in the cut page.

NOTE  The primary aim of this lesson is to highlight the advantages of using
the cut page with the Speed Editor. However, you can still use the cut page
without the Speed Editor. Where necessary, the steps detailed in this lesson
that use the Speed Editor will also have regular keyboard shortcuts and/or
interface buttons.
Cut Page Overview 271

Initially, the cut page may look like a simplified version of the edit page, but on closer

Cut Page Overview

inspection you’ll see that it contains some familiar features that conceal some powerful
functionality.

The whole interface of the cut page has been designed to make the best use of your
screen space, and it scales well whether working on a high-resolution computer monitor
or on a laptop with a small screen. Click and drag the Resize Timeline control to quickly
resize the interface.

TIP  To resize the timeline with the Speed Editor (see below), double-press and
hold the SNAP key and rotate the search dial.
272 The media pool features buttons for importing specific clips and whole folders of content.
A pop-up menu at the top left of the media pool allows you to quickly create and switch
between different bins.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

TIP  If you want to move a clip from one bin to another, select the clip(s) in the
media pool and drag them to the bin list, which will open allowing you to drag the
clip(s) to whichever bin you want to move them to.

The same area will also display the Sync bin and the Transitions, Titles, and Effects browsers.
The viewer has three different modes: Source Clip for viewing individual clips from the
media pool, Source Tape for viewing the contents of the media pool as a virtual “tape,”
and Timeline for reviewing your current edit.
The cut page has two views of the same timeline, so there is no need to constantly zoom in 273
or out as you’re editing.

Cut Page Overview

The upper (mini) timeline displays a birds-eye view of the whole of the current timeline and
is useful for navigating the specific parts of your edit; the lower timeline displays a zoomed-
in portion of your timeline at the current playhead position and is useful for performing
detailed editing tasks such as trimming. Essentially, these are the cut page’s equivalents
of the Full Extent Zoom and Detailed Zoom buttons in the edit page.
The editing buttons provide quick access to some familiar editing functions such as
Append, Ripple Overwrite, and Place on Top. There are also some functions specific to
the cut page such as Smart Insert, Source Overwrite, and Close Up. Each of these editing
functions has a dedicated key on the Speed Editor.

The timeline controls provide options for enabling or disabling timeline functions such as
the lower timeline’s fixed playhead, snapping, audio trim, track mute, etc.
274
Speed Editor Overview
A key phrase to remember about the cut page is that it is built for speed, and to that end it
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

has its own dedicated hardware controller: the aptly-named Speed Editor.

The Speed Editor is an optional piece of hardware that has been specifically designed to
work with the cut page in DaVinci Resolve 17. It can be connected to your computer via
USB or Bluetooth and is small enough that it doesn’t take up too much room on a desk and
is easily carried together with a laptop for on-site editing.
There are a number of dedicated controls on the Speed Editor.
The cut page editing functions are found on the set of keys in the top-left area, often using
abbreviated labels for each of the functions—for example, APPND for Append edits, RIPL
O/WR for Ripple Overwrite, etc.
Specific buttons for SOURCE and TIMELINE allow quick switching between the Source 275
Tape and Timeline modes in the viewer.

Speed Editor Overview

The navigation buttons and search dial are used to quickly switch between source and
timeline views and control the speed and direction of playback.

The trimming buttons allow you to use the search dial to dynamically trim footage, and the
transition keys let you add, change, or remove transitions.
276 The function keys feature more general commands to move clips, adjust transitions and
audio levels, resize the interface, and ripple-delete clips.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

The center buttons feature a dedicated set of CAM keys that allow you to quickly select
clips for fast multicamera editing and choose just video- or audio-only edits.

The keys are grouped by color: gray, white, black, and one red, with their main function
detailed on the top of the key. Some of the keys have small lights that indicate whether a
function is enabled or not and many have secondary functions detailed on the front part
of the keys (which are easiest to see when you are sitting in front of the Speed Editor).
To operate the various commands on the Speed Editor, you’ll need to use any of the
following combination of actions:
1 Press: A short tap of the key and release, as if you were typing, selects the key’s main
function. If the key has a light, pressing the key activates the function, and the light
remains lit to indicate the function is active. Press the key again to deactivate the
function and turn the light off.
 277
NOTE  Press is primarily used for the white keys and many of the gray keys,
such as STOP/PLAY, IN, OUT, and SNAP.

Speed Editor Overview

2 Double Press: Two short taps of the key and release. The double press triggers any
secondary function.

NOTE  Double press functions can be found on the IN and OUT keys, which
activate the CLR functions that clears the In or Out points, respectively, on the
ESC key that activates the UNDO function, and on the AUDIO LEVEL key that
adds a MARK(er) to the timeline.

3 Press and Hold: Press the key and hold it down (often using the search dial to adjust).

NOTE  Primarily used by the trimming buttons.

4 Double Press and Hold: One short tap, and then press again and hold the key down
(again, often using the search dial to adjust).

NOTE  Examples of this function can be found on the SNAP key to resize the
timeline and the SPLIT key to MOVE clips.

It’s best to position the Speed Editor within easy reach of your regular keyboard. Although
the Speed Editor is designed to increase your efficiency when editing in the cut page, it
should still be used in conjunction with a standard keyboard and mouse/trackpad/stylus,
as there are times when you need to revert to selecting a specific clip or typing some
information in a metadata field.
278
The DaVinci Resolve Editor Keyboard
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

The DaVinci Resolve Editor Keyboard is a full-sized keyboard designed for professional editors
who need to work faster and turn around work quickly. More than just a regular keyboard, the
Editor Keyboard has many of the functions of the Speed Editor, but also specific keys
dedicated to viewing and sorting functions that the Speed Editor doesn’t have room for. The
advantage of the Editor Keyboard is that it can completely replace your regular keyboard and
Speed Editor combination.

Sorting the Media Pool

In many ways, even though the task of editing—the arrangement of sounds and pictures in
a timeline—is no different in the cut page than in the edit page, there are still differences in
how each of these pages are designed to approach this task. Therefore, as always, it’s best
to start with the clips in the media pool and concentrate on how you can arrange and
review the footage available to you.
The media pool accessible in the cut page is of course the same media pool accessible on
any other page in DaVinci Resolve, though there are some notable differences compared
to the Media or edit pages.
You will notice that this project has several bins and one timeline in the media pool.
1 Click the bin list and choose the Arriving bin. 279

Sorting the Media Pool

The Arriving bin opens in the media pool and displays the clips contained in that bin.

TIP  You can also double-click any bin icon in the media pool to open that bin
and use the bin path at the top of the media pool to navigate back through the
bin hierarchy.

2 Click the bin list again and choose the Riding bin to reveal the clips in that bin.

The cut page has four ways to display the clips in the media pool. The default is
Thumbnail View, similar to the edit page.
280 3 Click the Metadata View button to the left of the Thumbnail View button to display the
familiar Metadata view.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

TIP  You can use the Inspector as you have done in previous lessons to
change or add metadata to this view as needed.

4 Click the List View button.

The familiar List view is displayed.

The List view in the cut page has some important differences to the edit page view of
the same name. For instance, the clips cannot be ordered by clicking the column name
header; instead, you need to use the Sort menu at the top of the media pool. Similarly,
you cannot manually change the number of columns displayed or the order they are
displayed in. You can, however, use this to view Camera #, Scene, Shot, Take, and
other metadata viewable in the File Inspector to individual clips.

TIP  You can use the File Inspector to quickly apply the same metadata value
to multiple selected clips.
5 Click the Strip View button. 281

Sorting the Media Pool

This displays each clip as a strip detailing clip information below.

Reordering Clips in the Media Pool

Now that you have explored the viewing possibilities of clips in the media pool, you’ll now
see how you can change the order of these clips.
1 Select Metadata View and click the Sort Media menu at the top right of the media pool.
282 The Sort menu in the cut page is the same for all the different media pool views and is
a streamlined list of the main metadata accessible in the File Inspector. Currently, these
clips are sorted by ascending timecode, so clips are displayed in Metadata view by
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

date and timecode, with earlier timecodes being sorted first.

2 Change the Sort Media By to Clip Name.

The clips’ displays change to emphasize the name of the clips, listed alphabetically.
3 Click the Master bin in the bin path to return to the Master bin.
4 Return to Thumbnail view.

Organizing the Media Pool Using the Cut Page

At first glance, it would appear that the media pool in the cut page is much more limited than
any of the other pages in DaVinci Resolve. For instance, although you can see a simple list of
bins from a pop-up menu at the top of the media pool, smart bins and power bins are not
accessible on the cut page. Similarly, although you can create new bins (using any of the
standard methods of creating a bin you’re already familiar with, as well as the Add Bin option in
the bin list), moving clips easily into a new bin is not immediately obvious but is as simple as
dragging selected clip or clips to the bin list! However, this approach to organizing clips using
bins is not how the cut page is designed to work. Instead, it is often easier to use the Sort
menu to choose how best to arrange the clips by metadata, as you will see in this lesson.
Viewing Clips Using Source Tape 283

As you have seen previously elsewhere in this book, there are a few ways of reviewing

Viewing Clips Using Source Tape

clips to decide if and how you may want to use them in your edit. Typically, this could
involve reviewing the clips from the media pool using one of the following methods:
‚ Live Media Preview
‚ Selecting each clip and opening them in the edit page’s source viewer where you can
review them one at a time.
‚ Arranging the clips out in their own timeline, which you can open in a stacked timeline
or in the source viewer to edit clips between timelines.
You have explored these methods at different points throughout this book, but the cut
page has its own unique method of enabling you to quickly review the footage: the
Source Tape viewer.
1 On your Speed Editor, press SOURCE or click the Source Tape button at the top left
of the viewer.

When you enter the Source Tape view, the media pool automatically enters a flat view
of your clips of the current bin. If the current bin contains any other bins, the contents
of those sub-bins will also be displayed. Therefore, selecting the Master bin
automatically displays all the clips within this project.
Notice how all the clips in the media pool are still sorted by Clip Name in ascending
alphabetical order but are now also displayed in groups, starting with A, B, C, etc.

TIP  The source tape view also lists the number of clips and the current bin
you’re viewing at the top of the viewer.
284 2 Drag the playhead through the viewer.
Notice how you can now quickly scrub through all the clips in the media pool using the
source tape and how the currently displayed clip in the viewer is automatically
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

highlighted in the media pool.

Do you also notice the white vertical lines displayed in the waveform display of the
viewer? These lines represent the start of each of the clips in the media pool.
3 On your keyboard, press the Up and/or Down Arrows keys to jump to the start of the
next or previous clip.

NOTE  If your playhead is partway through a clip, pressing the Up Arrow on

your keyboard will not return the playhead to the start of the selected clip.
Rather, it will jump to the start of the previous clip. This is one of the many
quirks of using the cut page.

4 Press Home to return to the beginning of the source tape (on a laptop keyboard,
you may need to press fn-Left Arrow) or drag the playhead back to the start of the
source tape.
The order in which clips are displayed in the source tape is directly linked to the Sort
Media menu in the media pool. Currently, you are viewing the clips starting with the A’s.
You should be looking at the first frame of a clip named Arrival_At_Work_Alt_Angle.mov,
which is currently the first clip in the source tape.
5 Click the Sort Media menu and choose Date Time. 285

Viewing Clips Using Source Tape

The order of the clips displayed in the media pool and the source tape change based
on the date and time these clips were created. Notice how the viewer still displays the
same clip, but now this clip is near the very end of the source tape because it was the
last clip created, other than the Citizen Chain Logo graphic and the music clip.
6 Click in the Sort Media menu once more and choose Bin.

The clip once again appears at the top of the media pool sorting, and at the start of the
source tape. Notice how the media pool now sorts and groups the clips based on their
bin names.
286
Stepping Inside the Groups
Now that you’ve seen how to change the sorting of the source tape, you’ll now explore
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

how you can reduce the number of clips visible at any one time in the source tape. This is
important, since you don’t always want to see every clip in your project; some projects may
contain only a handful of clips, whereas others may contain thousands!
1 With the viewer still in Source Tape view and at the start of the first clip, press the
SOURCE key on the Speed Editor or click the Source Tape button.

The media pool now steps inside the bin that contains the currently active clip and
displays just the four clips within that bin! How cool is that?
2 Scrub through the clips in the viewer to verify that you’re seeing just those clips.
3 Press ESC on the Speed Editor or Esc (Escape) on your regular keyboard.
The media pool steps back to the previous view of the clips in the whole project.
4 Move your playhead through the source tape to about 2 minutes (00:02:00:00) or click 287
in the Timecode field at the bottom-right of the viewer and type 20000 and press
Enter (Return).

Viewing Clips Using Source Tape

The playhead moves to the first of the two interview clips, which is also highlighted in
the media pool.
5 Press SOURCE, or click the Source Tape button again to step into the bin that contains
just the two interview clips.

6 Once you have reviewed these clips, press ESC on the Speed Editor or Esc (Escape)
on your keyboard to return to the source tape for the whole project.
288
Using Other Sorting Options
In the previous example, you viewed the contents of specific bins without actually
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

accessing those bins directly in the media pool. You can now use other ways to group clips
together to utilize the power of the cut page’s source tape.
1 Click the Sort Media menu and choose Clip Color.

The clips are now all sorted by the applied color tags.

NOTE  The clips colors are not sorted alphabetically but by the order in which
they are listed in DaVinci Resolve, hence the reason why the orange clips are
listed before the blue clips.

2 Scroll to the bottom of the media pool.

Here are a group of clips that have no color assigned.
3 Select the clips in the No Color Assigned group, and then right-click and choose Clip 289
Color > Apricot.

Viewing Clips Using Source Tape

TIP  You can also assign clip colors in the File Inspector.

The newly apricot-colored clips appear below the orange clips in the media pool.

NOTE  If the source tape ordering does not automatically update to reflect the
new order of the clips, click the Sort menu and choose Clip Color again to
force the source tape to update the order of the clips.
290 4 Ensure that your source tape playhead is over any of these apricot-colored clips and
press SOURCE (or click the Source Tape button) to step into the Apricot group of clips.
5 When you have reviewed these clips, press ESC (or Esc) to step back out to the source
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

tape for the whole project.

Using In and Out Points in Source Tape View

Now that you have seen the power of the sorting and grouping functions of the Source
Tape view, there is one further step you can use to help refine the range of clips you are
looking at: using In and Out points.
1 In the media pool, scroll down and click once to select the first clip in the Blue group.
2 Press SOURCE (or click the Source Tape button) to focus on the blue-colored clips.

These clips contain a mixture of clips where Sasha is out riding in the hills and the
shots of him arriving at the store.
3 In the media pool, click once to select the fourth from last clip, which is the first clip of
Sasha arriving at the store (Arrival_At_Work.mov).
4 Press IN (or click in the viewer to make it active and press I) to add an In point. 291

5 Press SOURCE (or click the Source Tape button) once more.

Viewing Clips Using Source Tape

With any In or Out points set, by pressing SOURCE (or clicking the Source Tape button)
you are now focusing on the clips within the In and Out points.

TIP  You can keep setting further In and Out points on this selection to keep
refining the clips you’re viewing in the source tape.

6 Press ESC (or Esc) twice to return to the source tape for the whole project.

TIP  Be careful not to press ESC on the Speed Editor too quickly, as this will
activate the UNDO function!

Viewing a Single Clip

If you wish to concentrate on a single clip at any time, you can switch to the Source
Clip viewer.
1 In Source Tape view, position your playhead over any clip in the viewer.
2 Press Shift-Q to switch to Source Clip view.

The active clip appears in the Source Clip viewer on its own.
292 3 Press Shift-Q to switch back to the Source Tape view.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

Navigating Using the Speed Editor

The Speed Editor makes it easy to navigate even the most complex projects using a
combination of function-specific keys and the large search dial.
To complete the rest of this lesson using your Speed Editor, make sure it is connected to
your system via USB or Bluetooth

TIP  If you are using Bluetooth, you can see the current battery status in
DaVinci Resolve > Preferences > System > Control Panels.

1 Click the Sort Media menu and choose Bin to sort the media pool clips by their
current bins.
2 Press JOG and use the search dial to scroll forward and backward through the 293
source tape.

Navigating Using the Speed Editor

NOTE  In JOG mode, the source tape shows a zoomed-in view of the
waveform of the clips in the source tape for reference.

3 Press SCRL and rotate the search dial left and right.
SCRL (Scroll) mode scrubs through the footage faster than JOG mode. SCRL allows
you to quickly review the clips you have to work with.
4 Press STOP/PLAY to play the source tape from the current playhead position.
5 Press SHTL on the Speed Editor.
SHTL (Shuttle) mode allows you to play through the footage at different speeds.
294 6 Rotate the search dial slowly to the right.
The source tape begins to play. The more you turn the search dial, the quicker the
footage plays (up to a maximum of 64x normal speed).
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

NOTE  You can see the current shuttling speed to the right of the viewer
transport controls.

7 Press SCRL to stop the shuttling and rotate the search dial to the left until the playhead
is at the start of the source tape.
8 Press SOURCE (or click the Source Tape button) to step into the Arriving bin, which
contains four clips of Sasha arriving at the bike shop.
9 Press the SHTL key and turn the search dial slowly to the right to review the footage at
about 6x normal playback speed (or at a speed you feel comfortable with).

TIP  If you aren’t following these steps with a Speed Editor, you can use the
Fast Review button to quickly review the shots in this bin.

These four clips provide a nice introduction to Sasha’s passion for cycling and reveals
the name of his shop. It’s time to start cuttin’!
Rough Cutting the Opening Shots 295

You will use the four clips in the Arriving bin to practice editing footage using the

Rough Cutting the Opening Shots

Speed Editor.
1 Return the playhead to the first clip where Sasha briefly passes in front of the window.
2 Press APPND to append the whole clip into the timeline.

NOTE  Simply pressing the edit function keys without setting either an In or
Out point will simply edit the current clip into the timeline in its entirety.

3 Still in the source tape, press JOG and spin the search dial right until you are about a
third of the way into the next clip, just before Sasha appears in frame.
296 4 Press IN to mark an In point at this frame.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

TIP  To adjust an existing In point, press and hold the TRIM IN key and use the
search dial to adjust the In point.

5 Turn the search dial to the right to jog through the clip until Sasha comes to a stop in
front of the shop. Press OUT to add an Out point here.
6 Press APPND to edit this clip to the end of your timeline.
 Notice how you can see both clips in the top timeline and a zoomed in, detailed view 297
of the clip at the playhead in the lower timeline.
7 Press SCRL and rotate the search dial to the right until you’re over the last of the

Rough Cutting the Opening Shots

four clips.
8 Press PLAY to begin playback and press JOG when you see Sasha enter the frame.

TIP  Pressing SHTL, JOG, or SCRL will automatically stop playback.

9 Using JOG, use the search dial to find the point just before Sasha enters the frame.
10 Press IN to add the In point.

11 Press PLAY to continue playback until after the camera tilts up to reveal the Citizen
Chain sign and before the camera wobbles away. Press OUT to add an Out point.
12 Press APPND to append the clip to the timeline.
13 Press SCRL and use the search dial to position your playhead back over the third clip
when Sasha locks the bike and there is the sticker, “Rosebud was a bike.”
14 Double-press IN and double-press OUT to clear both the existing In and Out points.

TIP  You can still use the standard keyboard shortcut of Option-X (macOS) or
Alt-X (Windows) to remove existing In and Out points. Alternatively, you can
press X to just mark the duration of the current clip in the Source Tape viewer.
298 15 Press APPND to append the clip in the timeline.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

Excellent! You have very quickly created a rough cut of this opening sequence, although
there is still some way to go before it’s finished.

Splitting, Deleting, and Moving Clips

With the opening shots in the timeline, it’s time to switch your attention to refining the
existing edit.
1 Press TIMELINE to switch the viewer to Timeline mode.

The search dial now allows you to navigate the timeline.

TIP  You can press Q on your keyboard to toggle between the Source Tape
and Timeline viewers.

2 Press SCRL and return the playhead to the start of the timeline, and then press PLAY
to review the edit.
This opening shot is too long and needs be moved.
3 Press JOG and use the search dial to find a frame just before Sasha comes 299
into the shot.

Splitting, Deleting, and Moving Clips

4 Press SPLIT to add an edit point to the clip under the playhead.
5 Turn the search dial to the left slightly to move the playhead back a frame or two and
press RIPL DEL to perform a ripple delete.
6 JOG through the footage until Sasha is passing in front of the window frame.

7 Press SPLIT then RIPL DEL to cut the shot and remove the excess.
300 8 Press and hold the SPLIT key to activate the MOVE function.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

The clip underneath the playhead is selected.

9 Still holding the SPLIT key, gently turn the search dial to the left to move the selected
clip to before the previous shot.

10 Use the search dial to return the playhead to the start of the timeline and press
STOP/PLAY to review the first two shots.
The edit still needs a bit of work as we have a repetition of actions as Sasha passes
the windows twice.
11 JOG to the point in the first shot where Sasha is roughly level with the tree on
the sidewalk.

12 Press SPLIT and RIPL DEL to remove the excess footage.

13 Press / (slash) to preview the edit.
Trimming Using the Speed Editor 301

As so much of editing is about trimming footage, it’s no surprise that the Speed Editor has

Trimming Using the Speed Editor

full trimming functionality. In the next few steps, you’ll learn how to perform ripple and
rolling edits.
1 With the Timeline mode still active, JOG the playhead to the fourth clip in the timeline.
This shot is a nice punchline to the Citizen Chain sign, but at its current length it’s a bit
heavy-handed.
2 JOG the playhead until just as Sasha passes the lock through the bike frame.

This is where you want the shot to start.

Notice the small, animated white arrow in the lower timeline pointing at the nearest edit
point. This indicates the edit point closest to the playhead and will be the edit selected
in the next action.
302 3 Press and hold the TRIM IN key and turn the search dial slowly to the right until the edit
lines up with the playhead.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

TIP  You can also use the right monitor in the Trim viewer as a visual reference
to the frame that you’re looking for.

Now to trim the end of this shot.

4 JOG the playhead through the shot until the animated arrow points at the end
of the clip.
5 Press and hold the TRIM OUT key and turn the search dial to the left to trim the end of
the clip until you see Sasha returning into the shot, and then turn the search dial to the
right until a few frames after he leaves shot.
Rolling Edits Using the Speed Editor 303

1 Return your playhead to the second edit point in the timeline.

Trimming Using the Speed Editor

TIP  With Snapping enabled on either the Speed Editor or in the cut page (the
function is identical, whichever control you are using), the Speed Editor will
“stick” to edit points and other parts of the timeline momentarily as you turn
the search dial.
Alternatively, using the Up and Down Arrow keys to jump to the previous and
next edits also works in the cut page the same as it does in the edit page.

2 JOG the playhead back slightly and press Play to review the edit.

TIP  You can also press / (slash) on your regular keyboard to preview the edit.

The cut seems to work OK, but it might be better to roll the edit forward a few frames
and lose the awkward tracking movement of the incoming shot.
3 Press and hold the ROLL key to select both sides of the edit nearest the playhead and
use the search dial to roll the edit forward until Sasha is about halfway into shot on the
incoming clip.
304 4 When you think the edit is at the right location, release the Speed Editor key and
preview the edit again.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

TIP  If you prefer to nudge a selected edit one frame in either direction using
the keyboard shortcuts like you have been doing in previous lessons, you can
still do that here in the cut page. Simply hold the appropriate TRIM button on
the Speed Editor to select the nearest edit and then use the , (comma) or
. (period) keys to nudge the edit one frame at a time.

Excellent. You now have insight into how quickly and intuitively you can work with the
Speed Editor to navigate your clips in the media pool and then edit and trim clips in
the timeline.

Adding the Soundbites

It’s time to flesh out the story behind the bike shop with a few words from Sasha himself.
You will start by inserting the first sound bite before the final shot of the bike being locked.
1 Use JOG and the search dial to position the playhead near the beginning of the last
clip. You don’t have to be accurate, just make sure the animated arrow in the lower
timeline is pointing at the correct edit point.

TIP  You can use the upper timeline to help you navigate across your timeline.

2 Press SOURCE to switch back to the source tape and, if necessary, press ESC to see
all the clips in the media pool.
3 Press SCRL and use the search dial to locate the first interview clip,
Interview_01_CAM01.mov.

TIP  You can also select the clip you want by clicking once on the clip in the
media pool.
4 Press SOURCE to step in to the Interviews bin. 305

Adding the Soundbites

5 Return the playhead to the start of the Source Tape and press PLAY.
6 Press JOG to stop playback just before Sasha says “I appreciated the pun…”. If necessary,
use the search dial to JOG back a few frames, using the waveform display below the
viewer to locate the start of this line .
7 Press IN to add an In point.
306 8 Press PLAY until Sasha says, “Rosebud was really a bicycle,” stop playback, and then
press OUT to add the Out point.
9 Press SMART INSRT to insert the clip.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

The clip is inserted into the timeline but, unlike the edit page, the cut page has intelligently
inserted the clip at the edit point nearest the playhead, as indicated by the animated arrow
in the lower timeline. This is useful because it means you only need to position the
playhead close to the edit point you want to use, rather than being frame accurate.

Editing More of the Interview

One of the key philosophies of the cut page is that it is designed to allow you to move
quickly through your source footage, adding clips as you see fit, which you can then refine
in the timeline afterward. This is the main reason why the cut page does not automatically
switch to the timeline whenever you add a clip, as the edit page does. This allows you to
stay focused on either editing clips into the timeline or trimming the footage in the timeline,
with no time wasted switching back and forth between source and timeline viewers.
Following this philosophy, as you are still in the source tape view, it makes sense to add more
of the interview sound bites before switching to the timeline to trim the interview clips.
1 SCRL through the first interview clip to around the 02:50:00 mark.

TIP  Click the Timecode field below the viewer and type 25000 to jump to
that part of the interview.

This is a few seconds before the next sound bite you need to add.
 307
2 Play forward and set an In point just before Sasha says, “Well, here at Citizen Chain…”
3 Set an Out point after Sasha says, “challenging bikes.”

Adding the Soundbites

TIP  With the search dial in JOG mode, you can easily jog back and forth over
the clip, using the detailed waveform as a guide for where Sasha starts and
stops talking. Use this in conjunction with audio scrubbing, which can be
toggled on and off using Shift-S.

4 Press APPND to append the clip to your timeline.

5 SCRL forward to around 03:40:00.

308 6 Press PLAY and set an In point just before Sasha says, “A lot of the bicycles in our
garages….”
7 Play until Sasha says “…make them work again” and add an Out point before the
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

interviewer asks the next question.

8 Press APPND to append the clip.

9 Mark another sound bite from Sasha’s interview starting when he says, “bicycles have
stories to tell…” and ending after he says “…lots of miles left to travel still” (starting at
around 04:40:00) and APPND this to the current timeline.
10 APPND a final sound bite to finish, starting when Sasha says, “It’s just very interesting
to me…” and ending after he says “…a reflection of the person themselves” (starting at
around 05:00:00).
Adding an Audio-Only Soundbite 309

Sasha’s interview is coming along nicely; however, it might be useful to simulate a split edit

Adding an Audio-Only Soundbite

by way of introducing him and establishing the Citizen Kane link the shop name has.
1 Press TIMELINE and then SCRL to the clip of Sasha pulling up outside the shop, just
before the camera tilts up the reveal the Citizen Chain sign (currently the third clip in
the timeline, before the first orange interview clip).

2 Press SOURCE and return the playhead to the start of the source tape.
3 Play through the beginning of the interview and set In and Out points around the
sound bite, “I was a big fan of Orson Welles.”

TIP  Press Option-/ (macOS) or Alt-/ (Windows) to preview the clip between
the In and Out points.

4 Press AUDIO ONLY on the Speed Editor.

5 Press PLACE ON TOP.
310 The audio clip is edited onto a new A1 track. However, you’ll probably need to trim this
short sound bite and refine its position slightly.
6 Press TIMELINE and JOG the playhead until it’s over the orange audio clip, and then
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

double-press and hold the ROLL key to activate the secondary SLIDE function and
rotate the search dial to slide the clip left and right.

TIP  To trim the In and Out points of this clip, JOG the playhead toward the
start of the orange audio clip and press and hold the TRIM IN or TRIM
OUT button.

Syncing the Second Camera

As you are aware, this interview was shot on two cameras. The cut page can work with
multiple cameras, albeit in a slightly different manner than the edit page.

NOTE  For clips recorded with matching timecode, there’s no need to have to sync
the footage using the following steps, as the cut page will automatically use the
matching timecodes when using the Sync bin and the Source Overwrite edit.
However, these steps can be useful in syncing footage that does not have
matching timecodes.

1 Press SOURCE to switch back to source tape.

2 Select both interview clips in the media pool and then click the Sync Clips button at 311
the top of the media pool.

Syncing the Second Camera

The Sync Clips window opens.

Similar to the edit page, on the cut page you can use timecode, audio, and In or Out
points to establish the sync reference between the different clips.
3 Click the Sync By: Audio button to tell Resolve to sync these clips by their audio, and
click the Sync button.
312 Resolve analyzes the audio in the two interview clips and uses it to establish how the
two clips should be aligned, as indicated by the timeline in the Sync Clips window.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

4 Press PLAY to review the syncing.

TIP  You can preview each camera angle by either clicking on its image in the
Sync view monitor, or the camera icon in the timeline track headers. You can
also preview the audio of just the selected camera by clicking the Solo Audio
button in the bottom right of the clip monitor.

NOTE  If you’re not satisfied with the automatic syncing Resolve performs, you
can use the Unlock Sync button for the current angle. This will allow you to
manually move the offending angle into sync yourself. To revert back, just
press the Sync button again to reestablish the automatic syncing process.

5 When you are satisfied with the sync between the two clips, click Save Sync.
In the media pool, the two interview clips now have colored sync tags applied to them
to indicate that these clips are synced together.
 313
NOTE  You can have different groups of clips synced together in this manner. Each
group is indicated by a different-colored sync tag.

Using the Sync Bin

Now that you have established a synced relationship between these two clips, you can
quickly and easily add shots from the second camera to the clips you have already edited
in the timeline.

Using the Sync Bin

You will edit clips from the second camera by choosing where they should be added to the
existing interview clip, which you will also edit along the way.
1 Press TIMELINE to switch to the timeline viewer.
2 Use JOG to move the timeline playhead to the start of the first (orange) interview clip.
3 Press PLAY to play the interview and stop playback after Sasha says “…the play on
the words…”.

TIP  Using the JOG mode with Timeline > Audio Scrubbing turned on is a useful
way of scrubbing through the footage to find the correct place in an interview.

4 At the top middle of the Speed Editor, press SYNC BIN.

The Sync bin displays the two angles you can choose from.
314 5 Press the CAM 2 key to select camera 2.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

Camera 2 is selected and appears in the Source Clip viewer with an In point
automatically set at the same frame as the timeline playhead and an Out point set 5
seconds later, which is a little too long for this sound bite.

TIP  You can specify camera metadata for each of these clips using the List
view in the media pool or by opening the Inspector.

6 Play the clip in the viewer and press OUT to reset the Out point after Sasha says,
“Citizen Kane, Citizen Chain.”
You want only the video from this clip, rather than the video and audio, so you will
need to specify a video-only edit.
7 Press the VIDEO ONLY key on the Speed Editor.
The VIDEO ONLY key remains lit to indicate that this editing mode is active.
8 Press the SRC O/WR key to perform a Source Overwrite edit. 315

Using the Sync Bin

The new clip is added above the original interview clip in the timeline to emphasize
the play on words between “Citizen Kane” and “Citizen Chain.”

NOTE  Source Overwrite is one of the editing functions that exist in the cut
page but not in the edit page, as it is used in conjunction with the Sync bin.

Next you will remove the “Ah” that Sasha says, helping to tidy up the radio edit.
9 Press SPLIT to add an edit at the playhead position at the end of the second camera
angle on track 2.
10 Press and hold TRIM IN and rotate the search dial to the right to remove the offending
“Ah”, using the waveforms as a guide in the lower timeline.
316 11 Play the timeline, and after Sasha says, “After we named the shop…”, press IN to add
an In point.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

12 Continue playing and press OUT to add an Out point just before he says, “… we found
out that Rosebud was really a bicycle.”
13 Press RIPL DEL to ripple delete the marked portion of the timeline. 317

Using the Sync Bin

14 Press and hold CAM 2 and rotate the jog wheel to the right until it snaps to the next
edit point.

The footage from the Camera 2 angle is overwritten directly into the timeline as you
rotate the search dial! This is a function called Live Overwrite and is only available if
you are using the Speed Editor in the cut page.
15 Finally, press TIMELINE and JOG back to the start of the interview to review
the changes.
318
Refining Edit Points with Audio Trim
If you’re trimming an interview clip to finesse the radio edit, you can see a waveform display
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

that will help guide you by clicking the Audio Trim button.

With audio trim enabled, you will be able to see a large waveform display to make it easier to
see where the interviewee starts and stops speaking.

You will also notice that if you are trimming two clips on top of one another that start or end at
the same frame in the timeline, the trimming functions on the Speed Editor automatically select
all the edit points, making it even quicker to trim accurately, as you don’t have to worry about
losing sync.
Adding Close-Ups 319

The extra shots from the additional camera have helped emphasize important parts of this

Adding Close-Ups
interview, but there’s a bit more you can do to tidy things up. Switching between the different
cameras certainly helps the flow of the interview, but the limited number of cameras means
the cuts become a little predictable. To vary things slightly, you will use the cut page’s Close
Up edit function.
1 JOG back to the first frame of the interview on Track 1 after the first orange clip
on Track 2.
2 Press CLOSE UP.

A new clip is added between the two clips on Track 2.

3 JOG back and preview the new clip.
320 This clip is another version of the same clip that’s already in the timeline, but it has
been automatically scaled to simulate a change in shot size.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

NOTE  The Close Up function is most effective if you’re working with material
that is higher resolution than your timeline resolution (i.e., 4K clips in a 1080
HD timeline), as Resolve applies an automatic adjustment to the Zoom
parameters of the clip. Close Up edits also perform face detection on the
clip as it’s scaled, and if any faces are found, it will attempt to frame those
appropriately.

The close-up seems to work, so why not try to do the same with the last interview clip?
4 JOG the playhead to the first frame of the third clip on Track 2 and press CLOSE UP.

A new clip is added to Track 3. Note how the lower timeline automatically scales the
height of all these clips in the timeline without you having to do anything.
Play back the new clip to see the results.
 It’s definitely a close-up. Unfortunately, Resolve hasn’t been able to identify the 321
correct framing.
5 With the playhead over the clip on Track 3, press and hold the CLOSE UP key to

Adding Close-Ups
activate the secondary YPOS function, and rotate the search dial to the left to
reposition the vertical framing of the shot.

TIP  To see the previous shot still on Track 2, use your mouse to select the clip
on Track 3 and press D to disable the clip. Pressing D again will re-enable the
close-up version.

6 Review the changes you’ve made and, if necessary, use the TRIM IN and TRIM OUT
functions to refine the edit further.

TIP  You may need to tighten up the edit a little more now that the shots are
much closer as you’re drawing much more attention to Sasha’s eye
movements, which can distract from the smoothness of the cut.
322
Adding Cutaways
1 In the timeline, move the playhead so it starts at the first interview clip after the last
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

blue clip, where Sasha says, “Well, here at Citizen Chain…”

2 Press SOURCE to switch to the source tape.

3 Press SHTL and shuttle forward through the source tape to find the clips where Sasha
is working on the bikes.
4 Press SOURCE again to step into the bin of this footage.
5 Switch to SCRL and scroll through the footage of the workshop, looking for a shot of 323
Sasha and his dog walking past the Citizen Chain sign.

Adding Cutaways
TIP  If you find it hard to locate the clip using the Speed Editor, use the Up and
Down Arrow keys on your keyboard to jump between shots or click the clip
Citizen_Chain_Sign_Interior.mov to jump straight to the clip you need.

6 Switch to JOG mode and jog through the shot until you see the dog enter the frame
and add an In point here.
324 7 Play forward through the shot and add an Out point after Sasha has walked
out of frame.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

8 Press PLACE ON TOP to edit the cutaway over the interview in the timeline.

Remember, the philosophy of the cut page is to add the shots before trimming them.
As much as you’re tempted, try to resist the urge to switch to the timeline to review this
single clip.
9 Press SCRL and scroll back to the start of the source tape for the current bin. 325

10 Play through the first clip and set an In point as Sasha picks the bike up and set an
Out point after he has left frame. Press PLACE ON TOP.

Adding Cutaways
11 SCRL forward through the source tape until the clip after the shot of the dog and Sasha
entering (Gears_Crank_CU.mov).
12 Add an In point after the director calls “action” and before Sasha starts turning the bike
chain, and then add an Out point before Sasha’s hand comes into shot.
13 Press VIDEO ONLY to disable the video only editing function, and then press
PLACE ON TOP.
14 Scroll forward to the final shot in the source tape (Working_On_Gears_MS.mov) and
add In and Out points to mark a few seconds at the start of the shot where Sasha is
looking at the wheel. Press PLACE ON TOP.

15 Return to the start of these shots and review the cutaways.

326
Trimming the Cutaways
You should have had enough practice trimming in the cut page with the Speed Editor to be
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

able to refine these cutaway clips, but there are a few things to watch out for.

First, when trimming clips, make sure the animated arrow in the lower timeline is pointing at the
correct edit; otherwise, you may find yourself trimming the clips on Track 1, not Track 2, or any other
track. If the arrow is pointing at the wrong edit, try jogging the playhead nearer to the correct edit.

Remember also that the cut page will trim all edits across all tracks if they line up on the same
frame. To target just one of these (for instance, the clip on track 2 only), you can either manually
select the clip with the mouse or press CAM # (the number of the track that the clip is on).

Clips on tracks other than Track 1 will not ripple, so deleting or trimming the incoming or
outgoing side of an edit will always create a gap.

Slipping uses the edit points as a reference rather than the clip as in the edit page. Using the
SLIP SRC key will slip the clip to the left of the highlighted edit, and SLIP DEST will slip the clip
to the right of the same edit.

Excellent. For practice and a little extra credit, why not put your new skills to the test
by adding some more cutaways from the Riding bin to cover the last couple of sound
bites in this timeline?
Adding Graphics and Transitions 327

Now that the majority of the piece has been cut, you can add a few of the finishing

Adding Graphics and Transitions

flourishes such as graphics and transitions, before adding and mixing the soundtrack.
1 Return the playhead to the start of the timeline.
2 Press SOURCE to switch to source tape and click once on the CC-Logo.png clip.
This is the easiest way of locating this clip, as it’s so short in comparison to the other
video clips.

3 Press SMART INSRT to insert the clip at the start of your edit. The graphic will be
edited into the timeline with a default 5-second duration.

NOTE  If the graphic gets inserted on Track 2, UNDO and press CAM 1 to
target Track 1 and press SMART INSRT again.
328 4 Press TIMELINE, and then press and hold TRIM OUT and trim the graphic to 3 seconds
using the tooltip in the lower timeline as reference.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

5 Press the DIS key to add a dissolve to the edit highlighted by the smart indicator.
6 Press and hold TRANS DUR and use the search dial to change the transition duration
to 12 frames (refer to the tooltip in the lower timeline again).

7 JOG back until the animated arrow in the lower timeline focuses on the beginning of
the graphic. Press DIS to add the transition, and then press and hold TRANS DUR and
set the transition duration to 12 frames.

TIP  Double-pressing the TRANS DUR key will set the current transition
duration to be the default transition duration. This can be adjusted in DaVinci
Resolve > Preferences > User > Editing > Standard Transition Duration.
8 Press and hold the TRANS key to open the Transition menu. The currently selected 329
transition type is the one next to the red arrow. Use the search dial to scroll through
and change the transition to a Blur Dissolve (all transitions are listed alphabetically).

Adding Music and Adjusting Audio Levels

Adding Music and Adjusting
Audio Levels
You will now add a piece of music and set audio levels using the Speed Editor.
1 Return your playhead to the start of your timeline.
2 Press SOURCE to open the source tape.
Unfortunately, one disadvantage of the source tape is that it will only display clips that
have a visual element to them; audio-only clips such as music and sound effect clips
don’t appear. For clips like this, it’s best to use the Source Clip viewer.
330 3 In the media pool, double-click the Awakening_EDIT.wav audio clip to open it in the
Source Clip viewer.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

This audio clip has been edited to just over a 1-minute duration for this project.
4 Press PLACE ON TOP to edit the audio clip onto a new A2 track.
5 Press TIMELINE to switch to the timeline viewer and return your playhead to the start
of the timeline.

TIP  You may want to toggle Audio Scrubbing off (Shift-S) until you have set
the audio level for this clip

6 Press PLAY.
As is usual with music library clips such as this, the levels are a little too hot.
7 Stop playback and return your playhead to the start of the timeline. 331

Adding Music and Adjusting Audio Levels

8 Press and hold the AUDIO LEVEL key and rotate the search dial to the left. Notice
how the waveform display in the lower timeline changes to indicate the change in
audio level.

NOTE  The reason why the music clip is being adjusted is because it is the
only clip at the start of the timeline that has music. If you can’t see the music
clip being adjusted, check to see if your playhead is over any other clip
with audio.
332 9 Release the AUDIO LEVEL key. Click on the music clip in the timeline, start playback,
and press and hold the AUDIO LEVEL key again. Use the search dial to lower the
music to around -20 dB in the audio meters.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

Ducking Audio Levels

Ideally, you would want to duck the audio levels lower when Sasha starts talking.
1 Stop playback just before the first orange audio clip on A1.
2 With the music clip still selected, press SPLIT to cut the music clip. Notice the first part
of the split clip is still selected.
3 With the first audio clip still selected, press and hold AUDIO LEVEL and turn the search
dial to the right to increase the the audio levels slightly.

4 Click to select the edit between the two music clips.

5 Press Command-T (macOS) or Alt-T (Windows) to add an audio-only transition 333
to the edit.

Extra Credit
Extra Credit
Well done! You have successfully completed this lesson and learned how the cut page and
the Speed Editor work together to enable you to easily put together even quite complex
edits very quickly. Ultimately, the cut page is about working fast and accurately without you
having to be worried about some of the finer points of editing, such as which frame your
playhead happens to be on.
There’s still more to do to complete the Citizen Chain promo. You can refine your editing
chops in the cut page further by completing the following exercises.
6 Add cutaways over the final two interview clips (if you haven’t already done so).
7 Change the last interview shot of Sasha after the apricot-colored cutaways for
a close-up.
8 Add the Citizen Chain graphic clip to the end of the interviews and dissolve the final
shot into it.
9 Increase the music’s audio levels after Sasha has finished speaking.

NOTE  To see a finished version of this edit cut together using the steps
detailed in this chapter, choose File > Import > Timeline and choose the
Lesson 06 Cut page FINAL.drt
334
Randomized Multicamera Fun
Hopefully, this lesson has been useful in showing you how the Speed Editor, in conjunction
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

with the cut page’s unique approach to many editing functions, can be used to dramatically
increase the speed with which you can edit. As a final demonstration, you will revisit the
multi-cam footage from the previous lesson and see how the Speed Editor has one final
trick up its sleeve!
1 Choose File > Import Project, and in the file window that opens, navigate to
R17 Editing/Lessons/Lesson 06 Cut Page and Speed Editor and select the
R17 EDITING LESSON 06 Pt2.drp file. Click Open.
The project will be imported into your database (and will henceforth be available
in the Project Manager) and automatically opens to the cut page.
2 Click the Relink Media button and relink the media.

This is the same multicamera footage you edited in the previous multicamera lesson.
For this project, the footage has already been sync’d using the cut page’s Sync Clips
window, and the audio clip of the music has been linked to the first camera angle.
The first camera angle has been added to the timeline ready for you to add the
additional angles.
3 Press LIVE O/WR to enable Live Overwrite on the Speed Editor.
 With Live Overwrite enabled, the Sync bin is displayed, showing all the clips that have 335
been synced together.

Randomized Multicamera Fun

4 Press VIDEO ONLY on the Speed Editor.
5 Make sure the playhead is at the start of the timeline and double-press LIVE O/WR on
the Speed Editor.
Double-pressing the LIVE O/WR key activates the RND (Random) secondary function.
This edits a random angle over the existing timeline clip.
336 6 Double-press LIVE O/WR again to add a second random angle after the first.
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

The second clip to be edited is of a different length than the first. The RND function is
not only varying the angle but also the duration of each new clip!
7 Keep double-pressing LIVE O/WR until you have reached the end of the timeline.

How much fun is that? By using only the RND function on the Speed Editor, you have
“edited” the multicamera music video quicker than ever before!
Of course, editing using the RND key follows the “infinite monkey theorem”: that a monkey
hitting keys at random on a keyboard for an infinite amount of time will eventually produce
the complete works of William Shakespeare but is more likely to produce complete
gibberish in the shorter term.
While we are in no way comparing you (or any editor) to a monkey, the comparison to the
process is apt. Of course, while randomly assigning angles and durations in no way
considers the pacing and other nuances of the music and the performances, if you treat
this as a simple rough cut, you can always review and trim the various edits to your liking.
And if you prefer to use a different angle at any time, simply re-enable the Live Overwrite
function and double-press LIVE O/WR to add another random angle! Who knows, one day
you may eventually have the music video equivalent of Hamlet on your hands?
Lesson Review 337

1 In the cut page, which editing function is used to edit in a different angle of a

Lesson Review
synchronized clip?
a) Smart Insert
b) Overwrite
c) Source Overwrite
2 True or False? The cut page has three transitions: cut, cross dissolve, and smooth cut.
3 True or False? Once you select the Trim mode in the cut page, you can ripple
trim any edit.
4 True or False? Clips edited in the edit page using edit page-specific functions such as
fit-to-fill or replace do not appear in the cut page.
5 What piece of hardware other than the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor has been
designed to make working in the cut page even faster?
a) The DaVinci Resolve Editor Keyboard
b) The DaVinci Resolve Quick Keyboard
c) The DaVinci Resolve Keyboard Extension
338
Answers
1 c) Source Overwrite is the only edit function in the cut page that takes advantage of
Lesson 6  Faster Editing in the Cut Page with the Speed Editor

synchronized clips.
2 False. The transitions browser includes all the same transitions as the edit page.
Alternatively, you can change any applied transition by pressing and holding the
TRANS key on the Speed Editor and using the search dial to rotate through a list of
all the transitions. Cut, cross dissolve, and smooth cut are simply the transitions listed
on the toolbar and on the Speed Editor for convenience.
3 False. There is no Trim mode in the cut page. When you trim any clip on Track 1, this
will automatically ripple the timeline. Any clip trimmed on any other track will not ripple
the timeline.
4 False. All clips added in the edit page or the cut page appear in the other page.
5 a) The DaVinci Resolve Editor Keyboard.
Lesson 7

Compositing in
the Edit Page
Multilayered promotional videos or promos Time
combine video, audio, motion graphics, and This lesson takes approximately
75 minutes to complete.
text into a seamless animated short video.
While creativity and imagination make every Goals
promo unique, the ultimate goal is always Stabilizing the Interview 340
about conveying the message. You can apply
Editing to Different Video Tracks 344
the layering, graphic, and animation techniques
Creating a Compound Clip 355
you learn in this lesson to commercials in
which you need to persuade viewers quickly Animating the Compound Clip 356

to engage with a business. These techniques Opening a Compound Clip 368

also come into play when creating Cropping the Interview 371
educational content that needs to explain Creating an Animated Background 374
difficult or complicated concepts in an easy-
Adding Effects to a Compound Clip 383
to-understand way.
Working with Traveling Mattes 386
This lesson will introduce the compositing Adjustment Clips 402
and animation features available to you in
Using FairlightFX in the Edit Page 404
DaVinci Resolve 17’s edit page. These days,
Render in Place 407
editors often need to build composites and
apply some level of keyframe animation, Lesson Review 411

either as pre-viz (previsualization) for motion

graphics or as the final content.
340 To ensure the clarity of your multilayered promo, you must have a vision for the project
before you even begin. Unless you fully define what you need to communicate, it is tough
to choose the right approach.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

The goal for this promo is to create a simple multilayered, 30-second promo for a
documentary on the work of a rhinoceros conservation organization.
1 Open DaVinci Resolve, and in the Project Manager, right-click an empty space and
choose Import Project. Navigate to R17 Editing > Lessons > Lesson 07 Compositing,
select the R17 EDITING LESSON 07 COMPOSITING.drp, and choose Open.
2 Open the project and click the edit page button, if necessary. Relink the media files.Ç
3 Choose Workspace > Reset UI Layout to reset the interface to its default setting.
4 From the Timelines bin, double-click the DISUNITY PROMO START timeline
and play it.

This timeline uses two clips and a title that form the foundation of your 30-second promo.
You’ll work on both clips to enhance their appearance, and even enhance the rifle sound
you hear in the gap between the two clips.

Stabilizing the Interview

The first thing that the director would like is for you to try to stabilize the opening interview clip.
1 With the playhead at the start of the timeline, play the first clip.
 This short soundbite from one of the lead conservationists was shot with a handheld 341
camera, so it has a little too much movement for the director’s liking. You will use
Resolve’s Stabilization function to reduce this movement.

Stabilizing the Interview

2 Place the playhead anywhere over the first clip.
3 If necessary, open the Inspector and select the Video tab.
4 Click the Stabilization bar to expand the controls.

The Stabilization controls revealed here in the edit page are the same controls you
have available in the cut and color pages. The only difference is that you have access
to the stabilization graph in the color page’s Tracker panel if you need to refine
the results.
5 Click the Stabilize button.
342 Resolve analyzes the movement in the image and attempts to reduce the movement of
the camera.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

6 Play the interview again to review the results.

The image appears to be a little more stable than before, but there’s a distracting
“pulsing” that’s been introduced to the background behind the conservationist due
to the parallax differences between the background and foreground. You’ll need to
change some of the settings to minimize this effect.

TIP  To see the results better, press Command-F (macOS) or Ctrl-F (Windows)
to play the timeline viewer back at full screen. Press Esc to return to the
Resolve interface.

7 Change the Stabilization control’s Mode pop-up menu to “Similarity.”

NOTE  The Mode pop-up menu has three options to choose from: Translation,
which enables pan and tilt analysis and stabilization and is useful when you
want to stabilize movement along the X and/or Y axis only; Similarity, which
enables pan, tilt, zoom, and rotational analysis and stabilization; and Perspective
(the default setting), which enables pan, tilt, zoom, rotation, and perspective
analysis and stabilization. The perspective stabilization is causing the
“pulsing” background.
8 Press Stabilize again. 343

9 Return the playhead to the start of the clip and press Command-F (macOS) or Ctrl-F
(Windows) to view the results.

Stabilizing the Interview

The “pulsing” is not as evident, but the movement is still noticeable.
10 Press Esc to return to the Resolve interface.
11 Increase the Smooth slider to around 0.9.
The higher Smooth value reduces the camera movements further.
12 Reduce the Strength value to about 0.75.

Reducing the Strength loosens the stabilization slightly, allowing a little more of the
original camera movement back in to the shot.
13 Click Stabilize once more.
14 Press Command-F (macOS) or Ctrl-F (Windows) to see the results full-screen once more.
If necessary, continue to refine the Smooth and Strength settings to your satisfaction.

NOTE  You’re not trying to eliminate all the camera movement; you’re, just
trying to make it less noticeable.

Once you’re happy that the camera movement of this shot is less distracting, you’re ready
to start fulfilling the director’s creative vision for this short promo.
344
Editing to Different Video Tracks
So often in promos such as this, the complexity isn’t in the number of clips added one after
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

the other in the timeline, but rather it’s in the number of clips you need to layer vertically on
different tracks in the timeline.
Creatively, the director wants one shot of a ranger firing a rifle juxtaposed against another
shot of a rhino onscreen, as the conservationist talks about rhinos. To achieve this, you’ll
begin by stacking up clips that work well together onscreen to evoke a dramatic reaction.
1 From the Video bin, double-click the rifle clip to load it into the source viewer.
In this clip, the rifle is fired twice. Markers have been placed on this clip to indicate
where the shots occur. You want to make sure that you do not include that part of the
clip because you already have the sound of the rifle occurring later in the gap between
the two existing clips.
2 Press Shift-Down Arrow to move forward to the red marker.

Because you want to avoid the image of the rifle shooting, you’ll back up the playhead
by 1 second to set the input.
3 On your keyboard, type -1. (minus 1 period) and press Enter to move the playhead back 345
1 second. Then mark an Out point.

Editing to Different Video Tracks

NOTE  When typing timecode values, using “.” (period) can be used instead of
typing “00”.

Now you’ll mark the duration based on the first clip in the timeline.
4 In the timeline, move the playhead anywhere over the first clip and press X to mark In
and Out points around the clip.

Because you do not want the rifle clip to be heard, you’ll disable the audio.
346 5 In the audio 2 track header, click the A1 destination track control or press Option-
Command-1 (macOS) or Alt-Ctrl-1 (Windows) to disable the audio from the source clip.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

With the duration correctly marked and the right tracks targeted, you are ready to
perform the edit.
6 Press F12 to perform a Place on Top edit.

Video track 2 now contains the backtimed rifle clip without any audio. You now need to
add one more video clip of a rhino.

Editing with Fit to Fill

Fit to Fill is a four-point edit in which both the source clip and timeline have different
marked durations. DaVinci Resolve will automatically calculate the rate of speed adjustment
required to make the marked duration of the source clip fit into the marked duration of the
timeline. This automatic speed change is helpful where you want a particular action to
happen within a specific time, such as within a musical phrase or during a specific
voiceover section.
1 Move the playhead back to the start of the timeline, and then press X to mark the In 347
and Out points for the next clip.

Editing to Different Video Tracks

2 From the Video bin, double-click the Rhino clip to load it into the source viewer.

This clip contains In and Out points that mark a 20-second duration.
3 Press Option-/ (slash) on macOS or Alt-/ (slash) on Windows to play from the In to the
Out point before returning the playhead to its current frame.
The rhino in this shot moves very slowly. You will speed up the shot because you want to
fit the full action of the rhino into the 10-second duration you just marked on the timeline.
348 4 In the timeline track header, make sure the A1 destination control is still disabled so you
edit only the video track. Because no other video tracks are available, you’ll need to
add a new video track.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

5 In the timeline header, right-click the Video 2 track header and choose Add Track.

A new Video 3 track is added above Video 2. Now you’ll patch the video from the
source clip onto the Video 3 track.
6 Press Option-3 (macOS) or Alt-3 (Windows) to patch the source video to Video 3 in
the timeline.
7 Use the timeline viewer overlays or press Shift-F11 to perform a Fit to Fill edit. 349

Editing to Different Video Tracks

The new clip is added to the timeline, and its speed is increased to fit the 20-second
source clip into the 10-second marked portion of the timeline.

8 Return to the start of the Rhino clip in the timeline and watch the edit.
Rather than overwriting a clip and then using the retime controls to set the speed, if you
know the duration you want to use of the source clip, and the duration in the timeline, a Fit
to Fill edit can save you a few unnecessary steps.
350
Scaling and Positioning Clips
Currently, each clip fills the entire frame, the one on top hiding the tracks below it. Using
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

the onscreen scale and position controls, you can place the rhino and ranger clips so they
are visible as picture-in-picture effects.
1 Move the timeline playhead over the middle of the Rhino clip and click the Rhino clip
to select it.
You’ll use the onscreen controls to scale and position this Rhino clip as a picture-in-
picture located in the lower right of the frame.
2 In the lower-left corner of the timeline viewer, click the Transform button or press Shift-`
(grave accent) to show the onscreen transform controls in the viewer.

3 Drag any of the onscreen control’s corner handles to scale down the image and locate
it in the lower-right quadrant of the frame.
 351
NOTE  If you try to resize using the handles along the edges instead of the
corners, you will adjust the clip’s Zoom X or Y values separately. Use the

Editing to Different Video Tracks

corner controls if you do not want to change the clip’s aspect ratio.

To better judge the correct positioning of this clip against the background interview
clip, you’ll need to disable the Rifle clip.
4 Select the Rifle clip in the timeline, and then press D. The clip is disabled on
the timeline.

When creating this kind of multi-layered composite, it’s useful to have a guide for the
Title Safe Area. Title Safe refers to the portion of the screen that will be visible on a
standard TV screen.
5 Choose View > Title Safe > On.
352 The title safe guides appear in the timeline viewer.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

6 Reselect the Rhino clip in the timeline and use the onscreen transform controls to
refine the scaling and position of the clip until you are happy that the result looks
something like the image above.

NOTE  Ensuring that the resized image remains inside the inner safe area box
(referred to as Title Safe) ensures that the resized image will be visible if your
audience is watching your work on a TV screen.

Next, you’ll make the Rifle clip the same size but positioned in the upper-right quadrant
of the frame. The easiest way to match size is to copy and paste the attributes.
7 Make sure Rhino is still selected in the timeline, and then choose Edit > Copy or press
Command-C (macOS) or Ctrl-C (Windows).
8 Select Rifle in the timeline, and press D to re-enable the clip in the timeline.
9 Choose Edit > Paste Attributes or press Option-V (macOS) or Alt-V (Windows).
 The Paste Attributes command opens a window where you can select the attributes 353
you want to apply to the selected clip.

Editing to Different Video Tracks

10 In the Paste Attributes window, select the Position and Zoom checkboxes.
354
NOTE  Activating the Zoom checkbox automatically enables both the Scale X
and Scale Y parameters checkboxes.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

11 At the bottom of the window, click Apply.

Rifle is scaled down to the exact size and position as the Rhino clip. You can adjust its
position by dragging it in the viewer.
12 Shift-drag the onscreen controls to move the Rifle shot to the upper-right quadrant,
keeping it horizontally aligned with the Rhino clip.

Scaling the two picture-in-picture (PIP) clips allows you to see the background interview. If
you want to animate the picture-in-picture clip or add an effect to them, it can be easier to
do that if you collapse them into a compound clip.
Creating a Compound Clip 355

You’ll want to animate these two picture-in-picture (PIP) clips onscreen and offscreen. Of

Creating a Compound Clip

course, while you could animate each clip individually in your timeline, the process would
be much easier if you could treat both layers as one. By doing so, you could animate just a
single element rather than having to manipulate each different layer. By collapsing all your
tracks into a compound clip, you enjoy the ease of managing a single clip while still
retaining access to all your edits.
1 Select both the Rhino and the Rifle clips in the timeline.

2 Choose Clip > New Compound Clip or right-click one of the clips and choose New
Compound Clip. A dialog appears asking you to name the compound clip.
3 Name the compound clip PIP comp and click Create.

Both video clips collapse into a single new compound clip in the timeline.
356 The compound clip is also added to the selected bin in the media pool.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

Compound clips are treated just like regular source clips but are not a flattened
“mixdown” of your video and audio clips. It is a container of all your edits, which
remains “live,” so you can still access the contents at any time.

TIP  Deleting a compound clip from a bin deletes it from any timeline into
which it was edited, just as with a normal source clip.

Animating the Compound Clip

Animating in DaVinci Resolve may be familiar to you if you have used keyframe animation in
another application. Once you have enabled keyframing for any parameter in the Inspector,
you can reposition or scale clips in the Inspector, timeline, or directly in the viewer.
1 Move to the start of the timeline.
This is where you will create the first keyframe to begin your animation.
2 In the Inspector click the Video tab.
3 Drag right in the Position X number field until the clips are completely out of frame. 357

Animating the Compound Clip

TIP  You don’t necessarily need to select a clip on the timeline to be able to
adjust its parameters in the Inspector. DaVinci Resolve will automatically
display the controls in the Inspector for the clip on the highest video track at
the playhead position. However, if you are unsure which clip you are adjusting,
then selecting the clip on the timeline is a good way of avoiding any doubt.

4 To the right of the position parameters, click the Keyframe button.

A keyframe is added to the X and Y position parameters in the transform category. To

finish your animation, you now need to move to the frame where you want the two
clips to land in the frame.
358 5 Still with nothing selected in the timeline, type +1. (plus 1 period) and press Enter.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

The playhead moves 1 second forward. This is where you will place the “landing”
keyframe.
6 Drag left in the position X data field until the two clips are fully in the frame or type 0
in the number field and press Enter.
 359
NOTE  You could use the onscreen controls to change the X position of the
compound clip in the same manner you changed the zoom and position

Animating the Compound Clip

values of the two original clips. However, using the parameters in the
Inspector often results in a greater degree of accuracy and control.

7 Move to the beginning of the timeline and press Spacebar to play the results.
The two clips are animated onscreen together from the right side.
Next, you will animate the compound clip so the two clips shrink in size.
8 With the playhead at the time where the animation ends, and the PIP comp clip not
selected, type +5. (plus 5 period) to move it forward another 5 seconds.

9 In the Video Inspector, click to add a keyframe for the Zoom parameter.

10 Type +1. (plus 1 period) to jump forward another 1 second.

360 11 Change the Zoom X or Y parameter to 0.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

NOTE  By default, the Zoom X and Y parameters are linked. You can unlink
the values using the Link button to animate or adjust the Zoom X and Y values
independently.

12 Play the new animation.

Do you see how the two clips aminate toward the center of the viewer? This is because
this is the location of the Anchor Point of the compound clip. The anchor point is the
location around which a clip will zoom and rotate. By default, all clips have an anchor
point that is set at the center of the clip’s image.
13 Move the playhead back to the point before the zooming animation starts.
14 Click the compound clip in the timeline. The onscreen Transform controls should
display in the timeline viewer.
15 In the Video Inspector, click and drag the Anchor Point X value to the right until the 361
onscreen rotation control appears in the middle of the two picture-in-picture images
(about 300 pixels, depending on the size of the pictures within the compound clip).

Animating the Compound Clip

16 Play the zooming animation again to see the difference.

Adjusting the anchor point is important to be able to correctly adjust the animation of a clip
with the least number of keyframes.
362
Changing the Timing of the Animation
The animation is a little rigid and could probably do with being a little slower. To adjust the
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

timing of the movement, you’ll need to change how far apart the keyframes are from each
other. To do that, you’ll need to show the keyframe track for the clip in the timeline.
1 In the timeline, click the small diamond button to the bottom-right of the compound clip.
Clicking this button reveals the clip’s keyframe track. The four keyframes you’ve added
to this compound clip appear as small diamonds.

NOTE  This small diamond button appears only if the timeline clip has one or
more keyframes applied.

2 In the keyframe track, click the second keyframe diamond.

The keyframe turns red, indicating that it is selected.

3 Drag the selected keyframe to the right so the tooltip reads 1:00 for Position.

This indicates that you are moving the position keyframe forward by 1 second.
4 Return the playhead to the start of the timeline and play to review the slower
animation.
The slower animation works much better.
5 Click the third keyframe and then Shift-click the fourth keyframe. 363

Animating the Compound Clip

6 Drag both selected keyframes forward until the tooltip reads 2:00.

This moves the selected keyframes forward by 2 seconds each.

7 Deselect both keyframes, and then click the fourth keyframe again to select it.
8 Drag the fourth keyframe forward until the tooltip reads 1:00.

This moves the fourth keyframe forward by another 1 second.

9 Return to the start of the timeline and play through the adjusted animation.
Now that you have adjusted the timing of the animation, you can address the sudden
changes as the two clips stop and start their different movements.

Smoothing the Animation

To make the end of the first animation smoother, you can adjust the acceleration in either
the Inspector or the viewer.
1 Move back to the beginning of the timeline.
There is no point in adjusting the acceleration for the first keyframe as the movement
starts offscreen, so you will jump to the second keyframe, when the first part of the
animation ends.
364 2 In the Inspector, click the Go to Next Keyframe button or press ] (right square bracket)
to move to the next keyframe in the timeline.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

3 In the Inspector, right-click the red keyframe on the Position parameter and
choose Ease In.

NOTE  Ease In is available only if you have a keyframe to the left of the selected
keyframe and affects the acceleration playing to the selected keyframe (that is,
from the left). If you have any keyframes to the right of the selected keyframe,
you will have an option to Ease Out that will adjust the acceleration when playing
from the selected keyframe. If you have keyframes on either side, the option will
be to Ease In and Out, affecting both sides of the keyframe simultaneously.

4 Move to the beginning of the timeline and play forward to see the results.
The animation comes to a slightly smoother end but could be even smoother. To
change the amount of easing being applied to the animation, you’ll need to adjust the
motion path in the viewer.
5 Press [ (left square bracket) to jump back to the second keyframe and select the
compound clip in the timeline.
 365
TIP  If your playhead is currently before the keyframe in the timeline rather
than after it, then you can press ] (right square bracket) to jump forward to the

Animating the Compound Clip

next keyframe.

6 At the bottom of the timeline viewer, make sure the transform onscreen control button
is still enabled.
With the onscreen controls active and the clip selected, the compound clip’s motion
path is visible in the viewer. This represents the clip’s progression as it moves across
the screen.

At the current keyframe position, the viewer shows two handles on the motion path.

The larger outer handle on the right allows you to modify the shape or curvature of the
path, adjusting the route the clip follows as it moves across the screen. The smaller,
middle handle controls the acceleration of the animation.
366 7 Drag the middle control to the left, bringing it closer to the keyframe.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

Moving the middle handle toward the keyframe increases the amount of smoothness
applied to the animation coming into the keyframe. This is indicated by the dots along
the motion path getting closer together. To compensate, other dots elsewhere along
the motion path must become more spaced out, indicating that those parts of the
animation will occur quicker to make up for the slower part coming in to the second
keyframe. Using this control does not adjust the timing of the start and end of this
animation, but rather just the speed it travels along the defined motion path.
8 Move to the beginning of the timeline and play the results.
The result is a smoother, more natural movement to the end of your animation.
You will now apply a similar interpolation to the beginning of the zooming animation.
9 Press [ (left square bracket) or ] (right square bracket) as appropriate to move to the
third keyframe on the compound clip.
As this animation employs temporal rather than spatial keyframes, the acceleration
curve must be adjusted using the clip’s animation curve controls in the timeline.
10 In the lower-right corner of the compound clip in the timeline, click the Animation 367
Curve to the left of the keyframe button.

Animating the Compound Clip

The clip’s animation curve opens below the clip’s keyframe track in the timeline.
11 In the Curve pop-up menu in the top left, select Zoom X.

This displays all the Zoom X keyframes in the curve.

NOTE  By default, the Zoom X and Zoom Y parameters are linked so that
when you adjust one, the other will also adjust to preserve the clip’s aspect
ratio. You can override this behavior and change the Zoom X and Zoom Y
parameters separately by clicking on the Link icon between the Zoom
parameter fields in the Video Inspector.
368 12 Click on the first of the Zoom X keyframes.
13 Click the Ease Out button above the curve.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

Bézier handles appear on the right side of the keyframe. You can use these to adjust
the speed of the animation’s start.
14 Drag the Bézier handle to the right to slow the start of the animation.

15 When you are satisfied with the result, click the buttons to hide the animation curve and
keyframe track and press Shift-` (grave accent) to turn off the onscreen transform controls.

Opening a Compound Clip

Utilizing compound clips makes it easier to apply effects and animations to all the clips
contained within that compound clip. However, to change any of the components of a
compound clip, you must open it in its own timeline.
1 In the Timeline Layout menu, enable Stacked Timelines.
2 Choose Clip > Open in Timeline. 369

Opening a Compound Clip

Selecting Open in Timeline for a compound clip displays the contents of the
compound clip in the timeline panel.

3 In the timeline, select the Rifle clip.

This shot has a bit of a shaky handheld camera style that you would like to reduce.
4 Click the Video tab in the Inspector and click the Stabilization header to display the
stabilization controls.
5 Click the Camera Lock checkbox, and then click the Stabilize button.
370
NOTE  With the Camera Lock option enabled, Resolve will attempt to remove
all movement from the shot. However, this does not mean that you never need
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

to use a tripod when filming!

After the brief analysis, you can play the results.

6 Play the clip to see the results.
To refresh your memory of the original shot, you can turn off the stabilization.
7 Click the red switch to the left of the name to disable the stabilization, and then play
the clip. Re-enable stabilization when done reviewing.
Now that you’ve stabilized the Rifle clip, you can try to remove the camera movement
in the Rhino clip.
8 Select the Rhino clip in the timeline, and in the Video Inspector, open the Stabilize
controls and click Stabilize.

TIP  You can use this clip to practice working with the Stabilization in DaVinci
Resolve. Try using some of the options you’ve been exploring in this lesson to
see what results you can achieve. To reset the stabilization controls, simply
click the Reset button in the top right of the control.

With the stabilizations completed, it’s time to return to the full timeline.
9 Close the compound clip timeline tab.

NOTE  If you did not enable stacked timelines, you can still return to the
01_Start timeline by double-clicking its name in the path control in the
lower-left corner of the compound clip’s timeline.

Because the compound clip in the timeline has changed, the associated compound clip in
the bin and used in the 01_Start timeline was also updated. Compound clips saved to a
bin have a live link to the compound clip edited in the timeline, therefore inheriting all the
same changes.
Cropping the Interview 371

Rather than simply having the interview clip as a background, the director wants the

Cropping the Interview

interview to appear as a picture-in-picture to the left of the two smaller clips. To achieve
this, you will use the cropping options available in DaVinci Resolve. You will begin by
cropping the image to the correct size.
1 Select the interview clip in the timeline, and in the timeline viewer onscreen controls
pop-up, select Crop.

The handles of the bounding box around the selected clip in the timeline viewer now
allow you to crop the sides of the clip.
2 Drag the handle on the right edge of the onscreen controls to the left to just beyond
the left side of the Rifle and Rhino clips.
372 3 Using the bottom middle handle, crop the bottom of the Interview clip so it is aligned
with the bottom of the Rhino clip.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

TIP  To make sure the two edges are aligned correctly, it’s useful to zoom in
closer in the timeline viewer. Position your mouse pointer over the timeline
viewer and use the scroll wheel to zoom in and the middle mouse button to
pan around so you can clearly see if the edges are aligned properly. When
you’re finished, press Z to quickly reset the timeline viewer zoom.

4 Repeat with the top edge of the Interview clip, cropping it in line with the top of the
Rifle clip.
5 Finally, crop the left side of the Interview clip so it is inside the inner title safe area.
Retaining Cropped Image Position 373

Unfortunately, although the cropping fits well with the overall composition, the cropped

Cropping the Interview

image itself isn’t best framed within the crop.
1 With the Interview clip still selected in the timeline, locate the Cropping controls in the
Video Inspector.

TIP  You can use the sliders for Crop Left, Right, Top, Bottom and softness to
refine your cropping precisely.

2 In the Cropping controls of the Video Inspector, click the checkbox to Retain
Image Position.

3 In the Transform controls of the Video Inspector, use the Zoom and Position
parameters to reframe the interviewee within the cropped area.
374
TIP  You may find it useful to turn off the onscreen controls by pressing Shift-` (grave
accent) to see how your changes are affecting the image in the timeline viewer.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

Alternatively, you can turn on the transform onscreen controls to enable you to
drag the image around within the cropped area directly in the timeline viewer.

The Retain Image Position option overrides the default order of when the cropping is
applied to the image. The normal order of operations will apply the Transform settings to
the clip before applying the crop, even if the Transform controls were adjusted after the
crop; the result being you would have to position the image first, and then crop to achieve
the result you want. Using the Retain Image Position option means that the cropping is
applied to the clip first, before the Transform settings, resulting in an easier way to achieve
the desired composite.

Creating an Animated Background

Now that you have the images positioned onscreen, it’s time to fill the rather uninspired
blank background. For this, you will use and adjust one of the default Fusion Generators,
and to start you will explore the controls by editing the generator into a new timeline,
before copying it to the main timeline.
1 In the media pool, select the Master bin and press Shift-Command-N (macOS) or
Shift-Ctrl-N (Windows) or choose File > New Bin to add a bin.
2 Highlight the New Bin name and type Textured Background to rename the bin.

You will place the elements you’ll work on in the next few steps in their own bin to
keep the project organized.
3 With the Textured Background bin selected, press Command-N (macOS) or Ctrl-N
(Windows) or choose File > New Timeline to create a new Timeline.
4 In the New Timeline dialog, type Textured BG in the Timeline Name box and click Create. 375

Creating an Animated Background

5 Open the Effects Library, select the Generators category, and scroll to the bottom to
see the default Fusion Generators.
6 Select the Noise Gradient generator and edit it into the new timeline.

TIP  You can use drag and drop editing techniques to edit generators and
titles into the timeline. Alternatively, you can drag a generator from the Effects
Library panel directly to the timeline viewer and use the standard editing
functions of Overwrite, Insert, etc., together with timeline In and Out points
for effective three-point editing.
376 7 Right-click the generator in your timeline and choose Change Clip Duration or press
Command-D (macOS) or Ctrl-D (Windows).
8 Change the Duration to 10:00 and click Change.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

9 In the timeline viewer, click the Loop Playback button or press Command-/ (macOS) or
Ctrl-/ (Windows) and then start playback.

The timeline begins to play, and when the playhead reaches the end it automatically
returns to the beginning to loop the timeline.
10 If necessary, open the Inspector to reveal the Generator controls in the Video tab. 377

Creating an Animated Background

These controls are the same controls you would see in the Fusion page. You will use
them to create a custom background for your picture-in-picture composite you’ve been
working on. First, you need a little more texture to play with.
11 In the Inspector, increase the Scale parameter to 6.

The amount of noise is increased.

378 12 Select the Gradient tab in the Generator Inspector.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

This is where you can change the properties of the simple back-and-white gradient
being used for the Noise Generator by default.
13 Change the Gradient Type to Linear.

The Gradient now starts at the top of the timeline viewer and progresses down vertically
to the bottom. Notice how there is more black at the top of the timeline viewer and white
at the bottom. This is reflected by the Gradient color controls in the Inspector.
 379

Creating an Animated Background

NOTE  The start and end values for the gradient don’t use the usual X and Y
coordinate system typical of the edit page. This is because these values of 0
to 1 are used by Fusion, so they can be applied uniformly no matter what
resolution you’re working at. Therefore, if Start X is 0, it means that the start
point is located at the left edge of the timeline viewer; if Start X is 1, it means it
is at the right edge of the timeline viewer. Similarly, a 0 value for Y places the
point at the top of the viewer, and 1 is at the bottom of the viewer.

14 Click and drag the Start Y parameter value to the left until it’s about 0.4.

Now it’s time to add a little color to the noise.

380 15 Click the triangle on the right side of the Gradient color bar, and then click the
disclosure arrow next to the color box and use the hue and color swatch to select a
bright blue color.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

The generator now looks like a swirling, low lying fog.

16 In the Effects Library, select the OpenFX group from the sidebar and locate the
ResolveFX Blur category (located near the top of the Effects Library’s OpenFX filters).
Drag the Zoom Blur filter to the Noise Generator in your timeline.
17 Click the Effects tab of the Inspector to reveal the Zoom Blur controls and change 381
Position Y to 0.02 and the Zoom Amount to 1.3.

Creating an Animated Background

TIP  Even though the Zoom Amount slider only allows you to increase the
parameter to 1.0, you can increase it further by clicking and dragging in the
value field. Or you can type a value in manually by highlighting the value field.

Now your Noise Generator is looking much more appropriate as a background texture,
as it now looks like the fog is lit from below. You now need to simply copy and paste it
into the correct timeline.
18 Select the Noise Generator in the timeline and press Command-C (macOS) or Ctrl-C
(Windows) to copy the clip, then, using the timeline viewer pop-up menu, select the
previous timeline you were working on, DISUNITY PROMO START.
19 If necessary, disable Linked Selection in the timeline by pressing Shift-Command-L
(macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-L (Windows) and select the Interview and PIP Comp clips.
382 20 Press Option-Up Arrow (macOS) or Alt-Up Arrow (Windows) to move the selected clips
up one video track.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

21 Return the playhead to the start of the timeline and press Command-V (macOS)
or Ctrl-V (Windows) to paste overwrite the copied generator into place on V1. The
generator should be the correct length, but if necessary, trim it to the correct duration
of the Interview clip.
22 Press Shift-Command-L (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-L (Windows) to re-enable Linked 383
Selection and turn off Loop in the timeline viewer.

Adding Effects to a Compound Clip

Using the Noise Generator for a background in this manner is just one of the almost limitless
possibilities you have for creating these types of textured backgrounds in DaVinci Resolve.
Feel free to revisit some of the generator’s controls in the Inspector to see how you can
adjust the animation further.

Adding Effects to a Compound Clip

The opening composite is working quite well but adding a slight fade to the clips on the right
and a soft drop shadow to all three picture-in-picture clips will add a nice finishing touch.
As compound clips act and function just like a regular clip, you can add transitions and
ResolveFX to a compound clip just as you would to any other clip. This is especially useful,
as it saves you having to add multiple instances of an effect to each of the clips individually.
1 Select the PIP Comp compound clip in the timeline.
You’ll add a fade-in and a fade-out to this compound clip in one go.
2 Choose Timeline > Add Transition or press Command-T (macOS) or Ctrl-T (Windows).

The cross-fades are added to both ends of the compound clip.

384 3 Command-click (macOS) or Ctrl-Click (Windows) both transitions in the timeline to
select them and press Command-D (macOS) or Ctrl-D (Windows).
4 In the Change Transition Duration window, type 200 in the Duration field and
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

click Change.
Both transitions change to the new duration of 2 seconds.

5 Move the playhead to the start of the timeline and play the results.
Now you will add the final flourish of a drop shadow to all three clips using yet another
compound clip and an OpenFX filter.
6 Select the PIP Comp and Interview clips in the timeline and choose Clip > New
Compound Clip or right-click the selected clips and choose New Compound Clip.

NOTE  While there is no limit to the number of times you can nest compound clips
inside other compound clips, it is all too easy to fall into a compound clip “rabbit
hole,” similar to what happens in the film Inception. It’s always a good idea to name
your compound clips correctly to prevent you becoming confused as to which
level you’re working at.
7 In the Name field, type PIP Opener and click Create. 385

Adding Effects to a Compound Clip

The new compound clip is added to the timeline and the currently selected bin in the
media pool.

8 In the sidebar of the Effects Library panel, select OpenFX and scroll down to the
ResolveFX Stylize category.
9 From the Effects Library, drag the Drop Shadow effect to the compound clip in
the timeline.
386 10 In the Effects tab in the Inspector, increase the Shadow Strength to about 0.7, decrease
Drop Distance to about 0.02, and decrease Blur to 0.3.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

All three picture-in-picture clips now have a noticeable, uniform drop shadow applied that
helps them stand out from the background. More to the point, it’s easy to make any
changes to the drop shadows at any point; it’s just one set of controls, on one filter, applied
to one compound clip.

Working with Traveling Mattes

Working with masks and mattes to combine multiple images into a single image has always
been a staple of photography and filmmaking. These days, compositors and effects artists
often use traveling mattes in compositing software in much the same way. The term
traveling matte refers to a matte that changes over time. While previous versions of
DaVinci Resolve have had the ability to composite images in this manner in either the Color
or Fusion pages, DaVinci Resolve 17 now allows you to achieve the same results in the edit
page using externally or internally generated elements that can be used as the matte.

NOTE  In the following example, you will use a Text+ generator to create the
traveling matte; however, you can also generate the necessary mattes using other
third-party graphics or animation tools. A simple black-and-white image is suitable if
you want to use the luma composite mode, or an image file that supports an alpha
layer, such as TGA, TIFF or PNG, if you want to use the alpha composite mode.
To start, you will create a simple text element using the Text+ generator. 387

1 From the Effects Library, select Titles in the sidebar and select the Text+ title.

Working with Traveling Mattes

2 Drag the Text+ from the Effects Library to the V2 track above the herding clip, using
the orange marker at the top of the timeline as a guide.

3 Trim the Text+ generator clip to the end of the herding clip.

4 Place your playhead at the start of the Text+ clip.

5 In the Inspector, select the Custom Title text in the text box and type AFRICA’S in
capital letters.
388 6 Keep the font set to Open Sans but change the format to Extrabold.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

TIP  If you click on the font name and scroll through the list of fonts on your
system, DaVinci Resolve dynamically updates the text to follow the mouse
pointer in the list of fonts. This makes it much easier to select from the
multitude of fonts you may have installed on your system.

7 Change the Size to about 0.35 (ensuring the text stays within the inner title safe area).

The text needs to fill the screen more.

8 At the top of the Text+ Inspector, click the Settings tab.
This switches to the familiar Video Inspector controls.
9 Click the link icon between the Zoom X and Y controls and change the Y value to 3.0. 389

Working with Traveling Mattes

This scales the text vertically, filling the timeline viewer better.

Changing the Composite Mode

Excellent. This has created the basis of the matte you will use. Now, you will need to tell
Resolve that you want to use this to composite with.
1 In the Video Inspector for the Text+ generator, scroll down to the Composite controls.
Because the Text+ generator contains an alpha channel so that text can be placed
above other video clips, you will use that as a starting point.
2 In the Composite Mode pop-up menu, scroll to the bottom of the list and select Alpha.
390 Nothing appears to change. To use the Text+ clip as a matte, you need to edit another
clip onto the track above and change its composite mode to foreground. For this
example, you will create another texture using the Noise Generator.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

3 From the Generators category in the Effects Library, drag the Noise Gradient generator
to the Video 3 track, starting at the beginning of the Text+ title.

4 Trim the Noise Gradient to the same length as the Text+ title.

5 In the Generator controls of the Video Inspector, change Detail to 10.0 and Seethe
Rate to 0.0.
 Increasing the Detail adds more noise to the generator. The Seethe Rate controls how 391
fast the noise moves; with a Seethe Rate of 0, you’ve just created a noise generator
that doesn’t seethe (move).

Working with Traveling Mattes

We want this noise generator to be a bit more stylized, however. You will achieve this
with an OpenFX filter.
6 In the Effects Library, select the OpenFX category in the sidebar and scroll down to
the ResolveFX Stylize group.

7 Drag the Pencil Sketch filter to the Noise Generator clip on V3.

This dramatically changes the look of the Noise Generator clip!

392 8 Click on the Effects Inspector to access the Pencil Sketch controls. Reduce Stroke
Strength to about 0.7, Stroke Length to 0, and reduce the Tone Adjust Amount to 0.5.
The above values reduce the harshness of the overall Pencil Sketch filter.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

9 Finally, to disable any inadvertent animation, deselect the Animate checkbox in the
Sketch Texture Controls.

The Noise Generator now resembles something a little more like a rocky surface.
You will now tell Resolve you wish to composite this using the Text+ generator you
have already specified as being the matte.
10 Switch to the Video Inspector for the Noise Generator and select the Settings tab.
11 In the Composite controls, click the Composite Mode pop-up menu, scroll to the
bottom of the list, and select Foreground.
 Awesome! The texture you have created using the Noise Generator appears inside the 393
text of the Text+ clip.

Working with Traveling Mattes

NOTE  If you wanted the generator clip to appear outside the text, you can
change the Text+ clip’s composite mode to “Inverted Alpha.”

Changing the Titles

Now that you have created a textured feel to the text, it’s time to put the finishing touches
on this title. You’ll start by adding a couple of edit points to change the titles.
1 Shift-click the Auto Select control for any of the audio tracks to disable the Auto Select
control for all audio tracks.
394 2 Press Option-F1 (macOS) or Alt-F1 (Windows) to disable the Auto Select for Video 1.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

3 Position your playhead at the start of the Text+ clip and, ensuring you have nothing
selected in the timeline, type +3. (plus three period) and press Enter.

The playhead moves forwards 3 seconds.

4 Press Command-B (macOS) or Ctrl-B (Windows) to add an edit to the clips on the Auto
Select-enabled tracks.
5 Type +3. (plus three period) followed by Enter again to move the playhead forward
another 3 seconds and press Command-B (macOS) or Ctrl-B (Windows) again to add
a second edit to the Auto Select-enabled tracks.
6 Select the first of the three Text+ clips in the timeline, and in the Video Inspector, 395
select the Title, then the Text tab, highlight the word AFRICA’S in the text box, and
type SAVING.

Working with Traveling Mattes

7 Select the third Text+ clip in the timeline.

8 Highlight AFRICA’S in the text box and type RHINOS.

396 9 Select the second Noise Generator clip on Video 3.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

10 In the Video Inspector, on the Generator controls, adjust the Seethe control to adjust
the pattern of the texture. (The value doesn’t matter, just as long as it is different to the
original value.)

11 Select the third and final Noise Generator clip and adjust its Seethe control to adjust
its pattern. (Again, the value doesn’t matter. Try dragging the control to left for a
negative value.)
The matte now changes at the edits to fulfill the director’s vision. Feel free to roll
the edit points you’ve just added to adjust the timings of each of the words as you
think necessary.
You now have six clips on the timeline, creating three titles. To simplify things in the
timeline and make it easier to work with these elements, you will nest each of the titles
and their textures into their own compound clip.
12 In the timeline, select the first Text+ and Noise Generators and choose Clip > New
Compound Clip.
13 In the Name field of the New Compound Clip dialog box, type SAVING and 397
click Create.

Working with Traveling Mattes

The new compound clip is created and added to the timeline and the currently
selected bin.
14 Select the next Text + and Noise Generators, and then right-click the selected clips
and choose New Compound Clip.
15 In the New Compound Clip dialog, rename this new compound clip as AFRICA’S and
click Create.
16 Select the last Text+ and Noise Generator, and then create a final compound clip
called RHINOS.

TIP  While no shortcut exists by default for creating a new compound clip,
don’t forget you can always create your own using DaVinci Resolve >
Keyboard Customization. In fact, if you ever find yourself repeating the same
command several times, it’s a good opportunity to learn the shortcut or create
your own if one doesn’t already exist.
398
Creating Handles for Transitions
Next, instead of simply cutting between the titles, you’ll add some transitions. However,
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

because you have now nested each title into its own compound clip, this limits the clips
to the duration of the content of the compound clip.
1 Select the edit point between the SAVING and AFRICA’S compound clips.

Notice the red trim indicators on both sides of the edits. As you know, this means there
are no handles available to create the transition.
2 Press Command-T (macOS) or Ctrl-T (Windows) to see what happens when you try to
create transitions without appropriate handles.

The transition warning appears, confirming that you won’t be able to create the
transitions without adjusting the duration of the clips.
3 Click Cancel.
Although the compound clips themselves don’t currently have handles, you can cheat
by adding more content within the compound clip.
4 Right-click the SAVING compound clip in the timeline and choose Open in Timeline.
The SAVING compound clip opens in its own tab.
5 Select both generators in this timeline, then press Command-D (macOS) or Ctrl-D 399
(Windows), type 1000 in the Change Clip Duration box, and click Change.

Working with Traveling Mattes

The clips change to 10-second durations.
6 Select the DISUNITY PROMO START timeline tab.
Even though you have adjusted the length of the clips inside the compound clip, the
compound clip itself hasn’t changed duration in the main timeline.
7 Right-click the AFRICA’S compound clip and choose Open in Timeline.
8 In the AFRICA’S compound clip timeline, select both clips, press Command-D (macOS)
or Ctrl-D (Windows), type 1000 in the Duration box, and click Change.
9 Return to the DISUNITY PROMO START timeline and repeat the above steps to
change the duration of the clips inside the RHINOS compound clip to 20 seconds.
Now that you have added handles to each of the compound clips, you just need to slip
the compound clips.
10 In the DISUNITY PROMO START timeline, select the SAVING, AFRICA’S, and RHINOS
compound clips.
400 11 Press T to enter Trim Edit mode.
12 Click and drag left on any of the selected compound clips to slip the clips backward
until the tooltip reads -02:00.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

13 Still in Trim Edit mode, drag a lasso across the two edit points between the three
compound clips.

14 Press Command-T (macOS) or Ctrl-T (Windows) to add a standard transition.

15 Press A to switch to Selection mode and Command-click (macOS) or Ctrl-click
(Windows) to select the two transitions you’ve just added.
16 In the Inspector, change the Transition Type to Push, keep the Duration set to 1.0 401
seconds, change the Preset to Push Up, adjust the Motion Blur slider to 0.2, and set
the Ease menu to In & Out.

Working with Traveling Mattes

TIP  Motion blur controls the amount of blur applied in the direction of moving
objects and simulates the blurred images captured by film and video cameras
at all but the highest shutter speeds.

Play back the results.

Finally, it’s time to fade this title sequence in and out.
17 Add a 15-frame cross dissolve transition to the beginning of the SAVING
compound clip.
18 Add a 5-second transition to the end of the RHINO compound clip.
19 Finally, select all three compound clips and add a Drop Shadow filter from the OpenFX
category in the Effects Library.
402
Adjustment Clips
Compound clips provide a powerful way to make changes to multiple clips. Adjustment
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

clips are another method. Using an adjustment clip, you can apply effects to multiple clips
in the timeline without collapsing them into a compound clip. The adjustment clip does not
include any content of its own. When you edit it onto a timeline track, any effects or
adjustments applied to the adjustment clip are passed on to all clips located on the timeline
tracks beneath it.
1 In the Effects Library, from the Effects category, drag the adjustment clip to the start of
the timeline on Video 3.

2 Trim the end of the adjustment clip until it covers all the clips in the timeline.

3 In the Effects Library, select OpenFX and scroll to the ResolveFX Stylize category.

4 Drag the Vignette filter from the Effects Library onto the adjustment clip in the timeline.
 The vignette adds a customizable dark shading around the edges of the frame that 403
suggests lens imperfections.

Adjustment Clips
5 Select the adjustment clip and click the Effects Inspector to view the vignette controls.
6 Change the Softness to 0.0 to see the shape of the vignette.
7 Increase the size to around 0.8 and the anamorphism to 2.5 so the vignette is not as
pronounced around the frame.
8 Reset the Softness control to its starting value of 0.5.

The effect applies to all the clips on tracks below the adjustment clip.
404 If you are unsure about any of the changes made on an adjustment clip, disabling the clip
or muting the track the adjustment clip is on displays the original clips again.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

Using FairlightFX in the Edit Page

As well as a plethora of visual effects, DaVinci Resolve also includes a suite of audio effects
that you can use to enhance your audio. In a later lesson, you will explore the power of the
Fairlight page, which enables you to perform professional digital audio mixing and sound
design. First, though, you will discover how the FairlightFX can be used in the edit page to
enhance the gunshot sound effect on Audio track 3.
1 In the Effects Library, select the FairlightFX category and drag the Echo effect onto the
SFX Rifle Shot 02.wav clip on Audio 3.

As soon as you apply the effect to the audio clip, the Echo window opens and displays
controls for customizing the effect.

It would be a dramatic point in this promo if you made the rifle shot echo a few times as
the herding clip comes onscreen.
2 Lower the Delay to 0, the Feedback to 50, and the Wet/Dry to 100. 405

Using FairlightFX in the Edit Page

3 Click in the upper-left corner of the Echo window to close it.
4 Play the SFX Rifle Shot 02.wav clip in the timeline to hear the echo effect you added
to the rifle sound.
The echo lasts only for the length of the clip and is cut off abruptly once the playhead
reaches the end of the clip. To extend the echo, the clip must be longer.
5 Select the Out point of the SFX Rifle Shot 02.wav clip.

Unfortunately, you can tell straightaway, by the red trim indicator, that there are no
additional handles available for this clip. You will need to create handles from
somewhere. In this case, you will use a compound clip.
6 Click the Effects Inspector and delete the Echo effect from the clip.
406
NOTE  If you didn’t remove the effect before creating a compound clip, you
would still have the effect applied to the clip within the compound clip, so
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

you’d be no better off!

7 With the SFX Rifle Shot 02.wav clip still selected, choose Clip > New Compound Clip
or right-click the clip and choose New Compound Clip.
8 Name your new compound clip Gunshot extended and click Create to add the
compound clip to the timeline and the selected bin.
To be able the lengthen this compound clip, you’ll need to open it in its own timeline.
9 Right-click the Gunshot extended compound clip and choose Open in Timeline.
The compound clip opens in a new timeline tab. To be able to lengthen the compound
clip in the main timeline, you just need to add an additional clip that’s longer than the
current gunshot clip. While any clip could be used here, the best type of clip would be
an adjustment layer, as it has no audio and is effectively an empty video clip!
10 Click the Effects category in the Effects Library, select the Adjustment Clip, and drag it
into the Gunshot extended timeline.

The compound clip automatically creates a new video track.

11 Change the duration of the adjustment clip to 10:00 (10 seconds) and then close the
Gunshot extended timeline to return to the DISUNITY PROMO START timeline.
12 Once again, add the Echo effect from the FairlightFX in the Effects Library, but to the
Gunshot extended compound clip.
13 Again, lower the Delay to 0, the Feedback to 50, and the Wet/Dry to 100.
14 Trim the Gunshot extended compound clip to 10:00 (10 seconds) to hear the gunshot 407
echo and then fade away.

Render in Place
Render in Place
Now that you have successfully created your short multilayered, keyframed opener, you are
presented with a fairly complex timeline. One of the final things you can do when dealing
with parts of your edit that have several layers interacting with each other is to create a
mixdown using DaVinci Resolve’s Render in Place feature.
1 In the DISUNITY PROMO START timeline, press Command-A (macOS) or Ctrl-A
(Windows) to select all clips.
2 With all the clips in the timeline selected, choose Clip > New Compound Clip or right-
click any of the selected clips and choose New Compound Clip.

3 In the Name field of the New Compound Clip dialog, type Opener Mixdown and
click Create.
408 The clips are collapsed into another compound clip, which is also added to the
selected bin in the media pool.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

4 In the timeline, right-click the Opener Mixdown compound clip and choose
Render in Place.

The Render in Place dialog appears.

5 Leave all the options at their defaults and click Render.

A window opens asking you to choose a location for the rendered file you are about
to create.
6 Choose an appropriate location on your system to create the file and click Open. 409

DaVinci Resolve renders the compound clip into a new, self-contained video file.

Render in Place
The new file is used in place of the compound clip in the timeline and added to the
currently selected bin in the media pool. Using Render in Place is very useful for
flattening complex parts of your timeline into a single video file that is easier for
DaVinci Resolve to play back.

NOTE  Render in Place will not render the audio as part of the new video clip.

Even though you have now created a mixed-down version of your compound clip, you
can still adjust it.
7 In the timeline, right-click the Opener Mixdown Render 1.mov and choose Decompose
to Original.
410 The Opener Mixdown Render 1.mov video clip is removed from the timeline, leaving
the original Opener Mixdown compound clip in its place ready for you to make any
further changes.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

TIP  Each video clip created using the Render in Place function has “Render
1”, Render 2”, “Render 3”, etc. appended to the filename. This makes it easy
to create a Smart Bin to group each of these renders together to allow you
to locate them all quickly. It’s also useful to change the color tag for any clips
you choose to render in place as then it’s easy to identify them in the
timeline at a glance.

Editing multilayered promos is so full of creative possibilities that it can be tempting to add
elements, effects, and animation just for the sake of watching them on the screen.
However, unnecessary elements can often increase confusion when they should bring
clarity to your message.
As a result, when you create a motion graphics animation for promos, think through every
visual element and the way it moves. Make sure that each creative and technique choice
benefits the overall communication of the project. By doing so, you should be able to
create a more appealing design and maximize its impact.
Lesson Review 411

1 What will happen to a 4-second source clip edited into a 2-second marked section of

Lesson Review
the timeline using a Fit to Fill edit?
a) Only the first 2 seconds will be used in the timeline.
b) The clip will be retimed to 50 percent of its original speed.
c) The clip will be retimed to 200 percent of its original speed.
2 True or False? To display scaling and positioning controls in the viewer, you need only
to select the clip in the timeline.
3 True or False? To create a compound clip, set In and Out points around the clips in the
timeline and choose Clip > New Compound Clip.
4 True or False? Compound clips can only contain video clips and any selected audio
clips will be ignored?
5 True or False? Adjustment clips affect only one video track located directly above the
adjustment clip.
412
Answers
1 c). The clip will be retimed to 200 percent of its original speed.
Lesson 7  Compositing in the Edit Page

2 False. To display scaling and positioning controls in the viewer, you must enable the
transform onscreen controls button.
3 False. To create a compound clip, you must select the clips in the timeline, right-click
them and choose New Compound Clip.
4 False. Compound clips can contain both video and audio clips. Render in Place,
however, will only render out a video file, leaving any selected audio clips untouched
in the timeline.
5 False. Adjustment clips affect all video tracks located directly under the
adjustment clip.
Lesson 8

Edit Page Effects

In the previous lesson, you explored some of Time

the techniques you can use in DaVinci This lesson takes approximately
45 minutes to complete.
Resolve 17 to composite different clips for
creative results. In this lesson, you will explore Goals
some of these techniques further and learn Setting Up the Project 414
how to utilize some of DaVinci Resolve 17’s
3D Keyer FX 416
specialized effects.
Transform FX 426
Video Collage 433
Creating Tiles with Video Collage 448
Lesson Review 459
414
Setting Up the Project
To begin this lesson, you will import a DaVinci Resolve project and configure the edit page
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

workspace for working with effects.

1 Open DaVinci Resolve, and in the Project Manager, right-click an empty area and
choose Import Project. Navigate to R17 Editing > Lessons > Lesson 08 Effects.
2 Select the R17 EDITING LESSON 08 EFFECTS.drp project file and choose Open.
The Project is imported and added to the Project Manager.
3 Open the project, click the edit page button, if necessary, and relink the media files.
To make the interface a little more streamlined for the type of work you will undertake
in this lesson, you will start by adjusting the workspace of the edit page and save a
new layout.
4 Choose Workspace > Reset UI Layout to reset the interface to its default setting.
5 In the top left of the interface, click the Media Pool button to close the media pool, and
click the Effects Library button to reveal the Effects Library.
6 Choose Workspace > Single Viewer Mode to close the source viewer.

7 In the top right of the interface, click the Inspector button to open the Inspector, and
then click the Expand button to expand the Inspector to full-height, making it easier to
access the different parameters.

8 Choose Workspace > Layout Presets > Save Layout as Preset.

9 In the Save Layout as Preset dialog, type Effects Layout in the Enter Preset Name field 415
and click OK.

Setting Up the Project

TIP  To restore the default edit page layout, choose Workspce > Reset UI
Layout. To recall your saved preset, choose Workspace > Layout Presets >
Effects Layout > Load Preset. Additionally, if you later decide to make a
change to the layout preset, you can choose Workspace > Layout Presets >
Effects Layout > Update Preset to save the changes to the preset.

Finally, as you will be switching between different timelines throughout this lesson,
it will be useful to arrange the Timeline Sort Order to be alphabetical.
10 Click the Select Timeline pop-up menu above the timeline viewer.

The Timeline pop-up menu lists all timelines in the current project and can be a useful
way of easily switching timelines. This project has just four timelines, but other projects
may have many more. By default, Resolve arranges this list of timelines in Recently
Used order, so recently accessed timelines are toward the top of the list.
11 Click the timeline viewer Options menu and choose Timeline Sort Order >
Alphabetical.
416 12 Click in the Select Timeline pop-up again to view the sort order change and select 3D
Keyer to open the first timeline.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

TIP  You can also access the timeline sort order options in DaVinci Resolve >
Preferences > User > UI Settings and change the Timeline Sort Order
pop-up menu.

With the Project Archive successfully restored and your interface arranged appropriately,
you are now ready to start the first exercise in this lesson.

3D Keyer FX
A common effects task many editors are faced with is having to work with green- or blue-
screen footage. This footage is designed to be keyed against a background plate and is a
common technique used in fantasy and science fiction films, as well as in many TV shows
and online videos, where you may want your talent to appear against a virtual background.
In previous versions of Resolve, this was achieved by editing the foreground and 417
background clips in the edit page, before using the Fusion page (or color page) to
composite the footage together. However, in DaVinci Resolve 17 you can now create a

3D Keyer FX
finished, composited shot directly in the edit page.
Alternatively, even if the shot will be finalized later by a dedicated visual effects artist, the
editor may still need to create a temporary version of the composite to see how effectively
the foreground and background elements will work together. If the shots can’t be readily
combined as planned, it is so much easier for the editor to swap takes or edit around the
identified problems than it would be for the VFX artist.
In this exercise you will use the new 3D Keyer effect to composite a shot from the short
sci-fi film Hyperdrive.
1 Play the 3D Keyer timeline to review the short scene that’s been edited for you, and
then return your playhead to the start of the clip on Video 2.
Obviously, the second shot of the man against the green screen somewhat ruins the
conceit that these two characters are supposed to be in a spaceship orbiting a planet.
2 Select the clip on Video 2 and press D to disable the clip in the timeline and reveal the
background plate of the planet.

This is the view that the man should have outside the window of the spaceship. To
achieve this, you need to apply the 3D Keyer filter.
418 3 Press D again to re-enable the clip in the timeline.
4 In the Effects Library, select the Open FX > Filters group and scroll through the list of
filter categories to locate the Resolve FX Key filters.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

NOTE  Each of the Resolve FX Key filters is based on the appropriate color
page qualifiers; indeed, these filters are effectively the respective controls
from the color page packaged and made available in the edit page. There are
two color key filters you can choose to work with.
For this exercise, you will use the 3D Keyer but, even though the controls are
broadly the same, the HSL Keyer is useful if you want to specifically target
different combinations of hue, saturation, and brightness for a more refined key.
The Luma Keyer is used for performing keys on just the luminance (brightness)
of a clip and is often used in conjunction with composite modes.
The Alpha Matte Shrink and Grow filter can be used to further refine the keys
created using the other filters.

5 Double-click the 3D Keyer filter to apply it to the selected green-screen clip of the man
on Video 2.
The only indications that the effect has been applied is the appearance of the FX
badge in the timeline clip’s information and the Effects tab of the Inspector being
highlighted.
6 Select the Effects tab in the Inspector to reveal the control for the 3D Keyer filter. 419

3D Keyer FX
To begin the process of compositing this shot with the backgound plate, you will need
to enable the viewer’s onscreen effect controls.
7 In the timeline viewer’s onscreen controls pop-up, click the Open FX Overlay.

This enables the onscreen controls for any effects that have controls you can access in
the viewer.
420 8 With your mouse pointer, click and drag across the center area of the green screen.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

This process samples the main hue, saturation and luminance values of the green
screen highlighted by the blue onscreen control. However, you’ll notice some parts of
the green have fallen outside of this selection.

In the Effects Inspector, notice that the Eyedropper tool of the 3D Keyer has
automatically switched to the Add control.
 This allows you to add additional areas of the green screen that fell outside of your 421
initial selection.
9 Click and drag again to create two additional selections for the key across the areas of

3D Keyer FX
green to the left and right of your first selection.

TIP  If you find that you have been too aggressive in your selection and parts
of the shot outside the green have been selected, you can attempt to remove
those areas from the selection by using the Subtract Eyedropper tool.

With additional parts of the green screen added to your selection, you’ll probably
notice that a green edge remains near the side of the window. To refine the key
further, you’ll want to see a bit more detail as to what you are selecting.
10 At the bottom of the 3D Keyer controls in the Effects Inspector, change the Output
pop-up menu to Alpha Highlight.
422 Alpha Highlight displays the selected part of the key as a flat, gray area and enables
you to easily identify the areas of green that remain around the edges of the window.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

11 Change the Output pop-up menu to Alpha Highlight B/W.

In this view, the alpha channel you are creating for this clip is displayed. White
represents a solid area where you won’t see the background plate, black represents
areas of transparency where the background plate is fully visible, and any areas of gray
represent areas of partial transparency.
 423
TIP  To get a better view of the key you are working on, especially if you are
not using a dedicated monitor to display your viewer’s output, press P to

3D Keyer FX
enable Cinema mode and see your viewer as a full-screen output. Press P
again to disable Cinema mode and return to the Resolve interface.

To refine the key, you need to access the Matte Finesse controls.
12 In the Effects Inspector, click the disclosure triangle for the Matte Finesse controls.

The Matte Finesse controls contain familiar parameters for adjusting the cleanliness
of the key. In this case, you just want to clean up the black areas of the key.
13 Increase the Clean Black slider to about 14.0 to further refine the key and include the
final, wayward portions of the green screen in your selection.

TIP  Use the scroll wheel on your mouse to zoom in and the middle mouse
button to pan around the clip in the timeline viewer to get a better look at the
matte refinements you’re making. Press Z to fit the whole of the shot back in
the timeline viewer when you’re happy with your results.
424 14 Change the Output pop-up menu back to Final Composite and press Shift-` (grave
accent) to turn off the onscreen FX controls to see the results so far.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

Enabling Despill
So far, it seems that you have achieved an acceptable result, and the director is at least
happy that the foreground and background elements sort of work together as planned.
However, as always, there are ways this composite can be improved to help sell the shot
further. The first is by removing some of the spill from the green screen.

NOTE  As most keying filters rely on selecting a range of hue, saturation, and
luminance values to create the key, the process of selecting the correct HSL
values can be made slightly easier by having the green screen flooded with light
when it is filmed. Unfortunately, depending on the rest of the shot’s proximity to
the green screen, this can result in unwanted reflection, or spill, of the green on
the foreground elements.

1 Play through the clip on Video 2 until the man turns away from the window.
 Look carefully and you should see that the man’s face is reflecting some of the green. 425
Moreover, the upper-right portion of the man’s uniform (where the USEF logo is) isn’t
supposed to be that green as it also is reflecting light from the green-screen background.

3D Keyer FX
2 In the Effects Inspector, click the Despill checkbox in the Keyer Options controls to
enable the despill option.

The Despill checkbox turns on an automatic color correction that quickly eliminates the
spill from the image while retaining the image’s original color.

Garbage Mattes
Another common technique used in compositing shots using color keyers like this is to use a
garbage matte to exclude portions of the shot. This is especially useful if the green screen
doesn’t cover the full area within the frame, or you have an errant light or microphone in shot.
This shot from Hyperlight you are working on has no requirement for a garbage matte, but the
ResolveFX Keyer filters do have options for adding simple rectangular or circular mattes.
426
Applying the Final Touches
With the green screen keyed out, and the despill helping to clean up the composite, there’s
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

just a couple of final touches to be applied to really make the most of this shot, mainly so the
audience will be in no doubt that this man is on a spaceship, overlooking the planet below.
To begin with, you will reposition the foreground clip to the right to reveal more of what the
man can see through the window.
1 In the Inspector, click the Video tab.
2 In the Video Inspector, click and drag right in the Position X field until the value is
about 90.0 to move the foreground clip slightly to the right.

TIP  The great thing about working with keyed clips such as this is that you
can have full control of how the foreground and background clips are
positioned in relation to each other.

As you move the foreground clip further to the right, more of the planet is revealed
behind him.
Excellent job! You’ve now seen how easy it is to create a composited shot directly in the
edit page using the new 3D Keyer filter.

Transform FX
Another common compositing task many editors need to undertake is adding elements to
enhance shots such as logos on the side of trucks or placing content on screens to make
them more relevant to the scene. In the previous lesson, you learned how to quickly scale
and position a shot for a picture-in-picture effect. However, it’s very rare that if you’re
wanting to add an element to a shot that it will be dead-straight on to the camera. In this
case, you’ll need to use the Transform filter to be able to corner pin the image into place.
You’ll explore this technique by adding the Citizen Chain logo to the opening shot of Sasha 427
arriving at the shop.
1 From the timeline viewer pop-up menu, select the Transform timeline.

Transform FX
This timeline contains three shots. The first shot has a .png version of the Citizen Chain
logo edited over the top of it.

2 In the timeline, select the CC-Logo.png clip and press D to disable the graphic to view
a clearer shot of the underlying clip.
The director has asked for the logo to be composited so that it appears to be painted
onto the window on the far left of the frame.
3 Press D again to re-enable the CC-Logo.png clip in the timeline.
428 4 From the Effect Library, locate the Resolve FX Transform group of filters.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

5 Double-click the Transform filter to apply it to the CC-Logo.png clip in the timeline and
click the Effects tab in the Inspector.

At first glance you’d be forgiven for thinking that the Transform filter has very similar
controls to the standard transform parameters available in the Video Inspector of
any clip. However, this filter does add some additional controls over the standard
transforms by offering advanced options that include motion blur, edge behavior,
and cropping controls.
However, the Transform effect has three different control modes to choose from.
6 Change the Control Mode pop-up menu to Interactive – Canvas. 429

Transform FX
7 Enable the viewer’s Open FX overlay by pressing Shift-` (grave accent).

NOTE  You may need to manually select the Open FX overlays from the
onscreen controls’ pop-up menu if you are not following along from the
previous 3D Keyer exercise.

The Interactive – Canvas mode moves many of the Transform filter’s controls from the
Inspector to the timeline viewer, as represented by the white outline and red vertices.
You can drag these onscreen controls to distort the image in a variety of ways.

TIP  To reset any changes you have made to the onscreen controls, click the
Reset button for the filter’s Control Options in the Effects Inspector.
430 8 Ensure that your playhead is at the start of the timeline and, using the corner areas,
drag the controls so that the corners and edges of the graphic align with the corners
and edges of the window in the underlying video clip.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

NOTE  You will need to judge where the top-left corner will sit based on how
the graphic’s edges align with the edges of the window as, of course, the
top-left corner of the window is not visible in this shot.

9 When you are happy with the way the graphic aligns with the window, start playback.

Oh dear. Now you can see that although the graphic is aligned perfectly, because the
camera tracks right as Sasha arrives, the window doesn’t stay still within the frame, but
the graphic does.
 No problem. A couple of keyframes should help things out a little. 431

10 Return your playhead to the start of the timeline and, in the Effects Inspector, click the
keyframe button for the Canvas Keyframe control.

Transform FX
The keyframe button turns red to indicate a keyframe has been applied at the start
of the clip.
11 Move your playhead to the last frame of the CC-Logo.png clip in the timeline and
adjust the corner areas of the onscreen controls to align the graphic with the window
once more.

Another keyframe is automatically added at the end of the clip.

12 Press Shift-` (grave accent) to disable the timeline viewer’s onscreen controls and
review the results of the keyframing.
Perfect! The graphic now looks like it’s part of the shop’s window display. The
keyframes allow the graphic to follow the movement of the camera. Thankfully, the
camera movement is smooth and consistent. If it wasn’t, then more keyframes would
simply have been needed.
One final touch will really help sell this effect. You can change the composite mode
of the graphic to integrate it with the background clip better.
432
You Can Categorize Composite Modes Based on the Way the Math
Impacts the Two Clips
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

• Darken colors: Darken and multiply

• Lighten colors: Add, lighten, and screen

• Increase color contrast: hardlight, overlay, and softlight

• Cancel out colors: Subtract (a simple version of difference)

• Invert colors: Difference (similar to subtract but with negative results)

In many cases, the best way of working with composite modes practically is to set some of the
main ones and see how they impact the clips!

13 Click the Video tab in the Inspector for the CC-Logo.png clip and, in the Composite
controls, change the Composite Mode pop-up to Overlay.

The Overlay composite mode increases the contrast of the underlying video clip where
the graphic is the brightest (there is no change to the contrast of the clip where the .
png is transparent).
14 Reduce the Opacity slider to about 65.0 to reduce the intensity of the graphic and
integrate it further with the video clip.
 433
NOTE  The final control mode for the Transform filter is Interactive – Pins.
Adjusting the image in this mode is done by manually placing control points, called

Video Collage
pins, in the timeline viewer. Adding one pin only gives you position control. At least
two points are required for scaling and rotation. Dragging on one of the pins
scales or rotates the image around the other pin.
Using three pins, you can create perspective distortions by dragging any one of
the pins. You can add up to four pins for unique corner-pinning distortions that
don’t rely of the regions specified by the Interactive – Canvas mode.

Congratulations! You have now learned how you can distort and keyframe a clip to
composite onto other shots, no matter what the camera angle!

Video Collage
The final Resolve FX you will work with in this lesson is the Video Collage filter. In the
previous lesson, you learned how to use the Transform parameters in the Video Inspector
to adjust the Zoom and Position of a clip to create a picture-in-picture effect. The Video
Collage filter is designed to make it easier to create uniform, grid-based picture-in-picture
and other split-screen layouts. It is ideal for creating a “video wall” effect, which requires
the scaling and positioning of many clips.

The Video Collage filter works in two main ways. The default is Create Background, which
you’ll explore first.
434 1 From the timeline viewer pop-up menu, select the Video Collage Background timeline.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

This timeline consists of several video clips stacked on top of each other on different
tracks. To help you become familiar with the content, all tracks except Video 1 have
been disabled. You will start by enabling the other tracks one by one.

NOTE  Disabling tracks is different from disabling individual clips, as it disables

all the clips on the track simultaneously, similar to how the Mute control works
for audio tracks.

The clip on Video 1 is a short soundbite from Chris Lang, the owner of Organ Mountain
Outfitters.
2 Play the interview clip to familiarize yourself with it, and then return your playhead to 435
the start of the timeline.
3 Click the Enable Video Track control for Video 2 to enable that track, and play the

Video Collage
timeline again to review the clip on Video 2.

4 Repeat step 3 for Video 3 and Video 4, so all four tracks are enabled, and you are
familiar with each clip.

TIP  Shift-clicking a disabled track button will enable all disabled tracks for
the timeline.

You will now utilize the Video Collage filter to build a stylized picture-in-picture effect.
436 Typically, to create a picture-in-picture effect, as you did in the previous lesson, all the
clips on the upper video tracks would need to be scaled and positioned accordingly.
However, by default the Video Collage filter uses the topmost clip as the background,
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

using this clip as a “frame” and creating holes in this frame to reveal the clips on the
lower tracks.
5 From the Effects Library, locate the Resolve FX Transform group of filters and double-
click the Video Collage filter to apply it to the clip on Video 4.

The clip on Video 4 now displays the clip on Video 4 within four boxes. These four
boxes are the holes created in the Video 4 clip by the Video Collage filter.
Setting the Layout 437

The first step in configuring the Video Collage filter is to arrange the “holes” (referred to as

Video Collage
tiles) using the controls in the Inspector.
1 Click the Effects Inspector to reveal the Video Collage controls.

2 Click the Preview Layout checkbox.

438 Each of the tiles is now clearly highlighted and denoted by a number. The actual
number of tiles is dictated by the columns and rows controls in the Inspector. The tiles
with the darker shaded areas indicate the currently selected tile.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

3 In the Inspector, increase the number of Columns to 5 and the number of Rows to 5.

NOTE  The sliders for the numbers of columns and rows allow you to create
a grid of tiles up to 5 x 5 in size (25 tiles in total). If required, though, you can
specify higher numbers by typing them directly in the number field of the
appropriate control. However, anything over a 10 x 10 grid (100 tiles) probably
becomes a little unwieldly!

4 Adjust the Stagger Horizontally and Stagger Vertically sliders to see how these adjust
the layout of the grid.
 In this case, you’ll need to start with an even grid that is 2 columns x 2 rows. 439

5 Change the number of Columns to 2 and the number of Rows to 2.

Video Collage
6 Reset the Stagger Horizontally and Stagger Vertically values to 0.0.
7 Increase the Rounding slider to about 0.15 to further round off the corners of the tiles.

Now that you have the basic layout set, you can turn your attention to the
individual tiles.
8 In the Inspector, click the Tiles button to switch to the tiles controls.

These controls allow you to customize the tiles either as a group or individually. As you
won’t be needing Tile 4, you might as well remove it from the layout.
9 Click the Active Tile pop-up menu and choose Tile 4.
In the Layout, Tile 4 becomes the active tile, as indicated by the shaded lines in
the layout.
440 10 Click the Manual Tile Management checkbox.
11 Click Delete Tile to remove Tile 4 from the layout completely.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

With no Tile 4, Tile 3 now becomes the currently active tile by default.

12 From the Active Tile pop-up menu, choose Tile 2 to make it the currently active tile.

13 Click the disclosure arrow for Custom Size/Shape to reveal the controls.

Currently, Tile 2 is occupying only one part of the grid: Column 2 and Row 1.
14 Change the End Row value to 2 to expand Tile 2 into the space formerly occupied by 441
the deleted Tile 4.

Video Collage
With the layout of the tiles now set, you will customize the look of them all together.
15 Click the disclosure arrow next to Tile Styling to reveal the controls.
16 Increase the Tile Border to about 0.03 to add a consistent border around all the tiles.

TIP  You can uncheck the Apply To All Tiles checkbox to customize the border
settings for the currently selected tile further, if required.

17 Click the disclosure arrow for the Drop Shadow controls and increase the Strength
value to around 0.50 and the Drop Angle to about 90.0 to customize the drop shadow
around each tile.
442 Finally, one of the more powerful aspects of the Video Collage filter is the ability to
create animated intros and outros quickly and easily for each tile. These animations
can be either manually keyframed or automatically generated over a customizable
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

duration. There are four types of animations to choose from: Fade, Fly, Shrink, and
Rotate. In Create Background mode, however, only the holes created by the tiles are
animated, rather than their content, so Fade or Shrink are good choices here.
18 Click the disclosure arrow to reveal the Tile Animation controls.

19 Change the Animate pop-up to Intro Only.

20 Uncheck the Shrink checkbox and select the Fade checkbox.
21 Change the Duration slider to 48 to create a 2-second fade for the tiles (this timeline is
set to 24 fps).
22 Play the timeline to preview the effect so far, including the fade in uniformly applied to 443
all tiles.

Video Collage
Cool. Now it’s time to fill the holes created by the Video Collage effect.

Resizing the Content

Now that you have used the Preview Layout to set up the grid, look, and animation of the
Video Collage effect, it’s time to turn off the Preview mode and scale the underlying clips
to fill the holes in the background clip.
1 Position your playhead about halfway through the timeline (at about 2:00), so that you
can clearly see the three tiles, after their 48-frame fade in.
2 At the top of the Video Collage controls, uncheck Preview Layout.

Once again, the clip on Video 3 becomes visible through the holes created by each
tile. You now need to scale the clip to fit the hole created by Tile 1.
444 3 Select the clip on Video 3 and enable the timeline viewer’s onscreen
Transform controls.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

4 Use the onscreen controls to adjust the zoom and position of the clip on Video 3 so it
fits in the hole created in the top left of the grid.
5 Select the clip on Video 2 and, again, use the onscreen controls to size and position 445
the clip in the hole created by Tile 3.

Video Collage
6 As the clip’s edges extend untidily beyond the edges of the tile, change the onscreen
controls to Crop and use the onscreen controls to remove the excess from around the
outside of the tile.
446 7 Finally, change the onscreen controls back to Transform, select the clip on Video 1, and
resize the interview in the hole created by Tile 2.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

8 When you have each clip placed correctly within the correct holes, press Shift-` (grave
accent) to turn off the onscreen controls and review the timeline.
Awesome! However, as always, there’s one last final touch to add.

Stacking and Reordering Effects

The effect you’ve built using the Video Collage filter is looking great, but to really emphasize
the foreground clips you may want to add a slight amount of blur to the background.
1 Deselect all clips in the timeline and, in the Effects Library, scroll to the top of the Filters
list to the Resolve FX Blur category. Double-click the Gaussian Blur filter to the clip
on Video 4.
 Ah… By adding the blur filter, you’re simply blurring everything on that clip—including 447
the edges of the tiles and the drop shadow!
You’ll need to reorder the effects on the clip to keep those elements sharp and just

Video Collage
blur the image of the mountains.
2 Click the Effects tab in the Inspector.

Notice how the Gaussian Blur filter is listed below the Video Collage filter because
it was applied after the Video Collage.
3 Click the Up Arrow control for the Gaussian Blur filter to move it above the Video
Collage filter.
448 The background image remains blurred, but now the edges of the tiles are not blurred
because you have now specified that this is the order in which these effects should
be applied.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

4 Click the Gaussian Blur filter in the Effects Inspector to access its controls and adjust
the amount of blur to your liking.

NOTE  In the edit page, only the controls for one filter can be displayed in the
Effects tab at any one time; however, you can always access the controls for
other effects by clicking their names as you have just done for the Gaussian
Blur filter.

Excellent. You’ve seen how the Video Collage filter can be used to create effective
picture-in-picture effects over and above just using the transform controls available in the
Video Inspector in Create Background mode. Next, you will explore how you can use it in
Create Tile mode.

Creating Tiles with Video Collage

An alternative way of employing the Video Collage filter is to use it to create and animate
clips as individual tiles. This follows much more the traditional way of setting out a
composite by having the background layer on the lowest video track and subsequent
layers edited above this.
In this case, it’s best to set up the Video Collage on one clip using the Layout Preview
mode and, once you are happy with the layout and animations, copying the effect to other
clips where you can then adjust them further.
Much like editing in general, there may seem to be many complex steps involved, but once
you have things set up, the payoff is well worth it!
1 From the timeline viewer pop-up menu, select the Video Collage Tiles timeline. 449

Creating Tiles with Video Collage

Similar to the last timeline, this timeline has been set up with the same “background”
clip on Video 1, and a logo that fades in on Video 2. Video 3 through 5 are currently
disabled, but all have clips that you will use to build a custom animated intro for Organ
Mountain Outfitters.

2 Enable Video 3 in the timeline and review the shot of the girl in the hat.
450 3 Move your playhead to the point at which she has turned to look at the camera (at
about 3:00).
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

4 From the Effects Library, locate the Resolve FX Transform group of filters and apply the
Video Collage filter to the clip on Video 3.
As before, the filter defaults to showing a 2 x 2 grid displaying the clips on the lower
two video tracks.
5 Select the clip on Video 3 and click the Effects tab in the Inspector.
6 Change the Workflow pop-up menu to Create Tile. 451

Creating Tiles with Video Collage

The girl in the hat now displays as a picture-in-picture.

7 Click the Preview Layout checkbox to view the familiar tile preview.

8 Change the number of Columns to 3 and number of Rows to 1.

9 Increase the Rounding to 1.0 to create three circular tiles.
10 Change the Vertical Offset to about 0.22 so the tiles sit above the mountain range.
452 11 Increase the Horizontal Spacing to about 0.15 to reduce the size of the tiles.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

NOTE  The size of the tiles is based on the Left/Right Margins and Top/Bottom
Margins, with the outermost tiles placed at these margins and any additional
tiles distributed evenly between those outermost tiles. Therefore, increasing
the Horizontal Spacing between each tile results in each tile being made
smaller, as the outer margins haven’t changed.

12 Click the Tiles button and open the Tile Styling controls. Increase the Tile Border to
about 0.025, and then click the Tile Color chip and use the system Color Picker to
select a white border to match the Organ Mountain Outfitters logo.

13 Open the Drop Shadow controls and change the Strength to about 0.35, the Drop
Angle to 90.0, the Drop Distance to about 0.03, and the Blur to about 0.5 to create
a subtle, diffused drop shadow.
 With the tiles styled and positioned nicely, it’s time to consider how they will 453
animate onscreen.

Creating Tiles with Video Collage

14 Return your playhead to the start of the clip on Video 2 and open the Tile
Animation controls.

15 Change the Fly Animation pop-up to Fly Up. This specifies that the direction of the
animation will be from the top of the screen.

16 Click the Add Keyframe button for the Fly Progress control.
454 17 Move your playhead to the start of the timeline and increase the Fly Progress slider
until all the tiles have disappeared off the top of the screen (a value of about 0.55).
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

Easing the Animation and Adding Motion Blur

With the general animation set up, you’ll just want to ensure that you ease the movement to
a gentle rest. Adding a small amount of motion blur will also help achieve a slightly more
organic result to the final animation. For these steps, it’s best to be able to see how you are
affecting the actual clip that the effect is applied to.
1 Deselect Preview Layout.

2 Open the Easing & Blur of All Tiles controls.

The Motion and Size Ease pop-up specifies the type of easing for any keyframes
applied to the Tile Position and Size parameters. The Animation Effects Ease specifies
the easing applied to the Tile Animations controls.
3 Change the Animation Effects Ease pop-up menu to Out. This applies a curve to the
end of the animation, bringing the tiles to a gentle rest above the logo.

NOTE  The amount of easing applied to this setting can be controlled by the
Ease Amount slider; the greater the value, the more easing is applied.
4 Increase the Motion Blur to about 0.50. 455

Adding motion blur will make the animation look a little smoother by blurring the pixels
of the tiles in the direction of the movement, simulating the shutter on a video camera.

Creating Tiles with Video Collage

That takes care of the majority of the amination. However, the clip has yet to be
centered in the circular tile.
5 Open the Resize Content controls and adjust the Pan to about 0.05 and the Zoom to
about 0.7 to reframe the girl in the circle.

The filter is now ready to be copied to the other clips in the tracks Video 4 and 5.
456
Copying and Pasting Attributes
The easiest way to apply the same effect, with the same settings, to the other clips is to
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

use the copy and paste attributes commands, after which you only need to make one or
two adjustments to the copied filters for the new clips.
1 Click the clip on Video 3 to ensure it is currently selected, and then press Command-C
(macOS) or Ctrl-C (Windows) or choose Edit > Copy to copy the clip.
2 Shift-click the Enable Video Track button for Video 4 or 5 to enable all disabled tracks.
3 Select the clips on Video 4 and 5 and press Option-V (macOS) or Alt-V (Windows) or
choose Edit > Paste Attributes.
4 In the Paste Attributes dialog box, select Plugins and click Apply.
 The Video Collage filter is applied to the selected clips with exactly the same settings 457
as the original clip it was copied from. You will need to make a few changes to these
copied filters.

Creating Tiles with Video Collage

5 Command-click (macOS) or Ctrl-click (Windows) the clip on Video 5 to deselect it,
leaving just the clip on Video 4 selected.
6 Click the Effects tab in the Inspector to reveal the Video Collage settings for the
selected clip.
7 In the Manage Tiles controls, change the Active Tile pop-up menu to Tile 2.
458 The clip on Video 2 appears in the position specified for Tile 2.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

8 Open the Resize Content control and change the Pan to about 0.05 and the
Zoom to 0.6.

9 Select the clip on Video 5, change the Active Tile pop-up to Tile 3 and, in the Resize
Content controls, change the Zoom to about 0.57.
10 Return your playhead to the start of the timeline and play back to review the final 459
composited clips.

Lesson Review
NOTE  You can import .drt files of each of these finished timelines from R17
Editing > Lessons > Lesson 08 Effects > Finished Timelines.

Well done! You have successfully completed this lesson and can now use some of the new
effects included with DaVinci Resolve 17 to complete common tasks required of editors on
a daily basis.

Lesson Review
1 Which DaVinci Resolve FX can be used to key blue- or green-screen footage over a
background?
a) Luma Keyer
b) HSL Keyer
c) 3D Keyer
2 True or False? The only way to tell if a clip has a Resolve FX applied is to open the
Inspector.
3 Which Resolve FX can be used to easily adjust a clip’s pitch, yaw, width, and height
values using intuitive onscreen controls?
a) Distort
b) Perspective
c) Transform
4 Which Resolve FX can be used to quickly create complex picture-in-picture effects?
a) Grid
b) Video Collage
c) Blanking Fill
5 True or False? Video Collage animation presets cannot be keyframed.
460
Answers
1 b) and c). Luma Keyer has no controls for selecting hue and saturation values.
Lesson 8  Edit Page Effects

2 False. The timeline clip displays a small FX badge next to the clip name.
3 c) Transform.
4 b) Video Collage.
5 False.
Lesson 9

Editing and Mixing Audio

Your project’s soundtrack is an essential part Time

of the overall audience experience. You could This lesson takes approximately
60 minutes to complete.
have the most wonderful editing, fantastic
effects, and superb grading on your film, but Goals
if your audience can’t hear what’s happening Preparing the Project 462
clearly, they won’t be able to engage with
Balancing the Dialogue Clips 465
your story and will quickly switch off. And
Replacing Lines from Other Takes 471
that’s as true today for films, TV shows, and
videos as it’s ever been. Enhancing the Scene 476
Panning Tracks in Acoustic Space 479
In this lesson, you’ll explore some specific
techniques for audio editing, sound design, Adding Layers for More Atmosphere 483

and final mixing for your timelines, including Creating a Radio Effect 490
“sweetening” your soundtrack through the Simplifying the Mix 500
use of equalization and dynamic controls, Mixing with the Mixer 507
panning and recording track automation, and Adding More Mains 509
meeting delivery standards for loudness.
Recording Automation in Fairlight 516
Measuring Loudness 522
Lesson Review 527
462 You will start by exploring what’s possible in the edit page, but to truly understand the
possibilities DaVinci Resolve 17 offers for working with audio, it’s necessary for editors to
brave the Fairlight page. Fortunately, while Fairlight is designed to create big Hollywood
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

soundtracks, you’ll find it familiar enough for you to use as an editor.

Preparing the Project

Before you start, let’s take a moment to open the project and get acquainted with the bins
and timelines that you’ll use throughout this lesson.

TIP  Ideally, you’ll want to have a good set of speakers or headphones connected
to your computer for this lesson to appreciate the audible subtleties.

1 In the Project Manager, right-click and choose Import Project. Navigate to R17 Editing >
Lessons > Lesson 09 Audio. Select the R17 Editing Lesson 09 Audio.drp project.
Choose Open and click OK to import the project into your Project Manager.
2 Open the project and relink media files.
In the media pool, you can see a series of bins that contain the elements of your scene
with the doctor and the FBI agents.
3 Right-click the Master bin and choose Sort By > Name to organize the bins by
ascending alphabetical order.
4 From the Timeline Viewer pop-up menu, choose the AUDIO EDITING START timeline 463
to open it.
5 Click the Full Extent Zoom button to show the full duration of the timeline.

Preparing the Project

6 Play through the timeline to reacquaint yourself with the scene.

Wow! There’s a lot going on in this timeline! You should be familiar with this scene
between Doctor Kaminsky and the FBI agents, which you cut in an earlier lesson. This
is a slightly refined version of the scene with several lines of dialogue having been
removed to help the scene’s pacing. Some additional elements have also been added
to enhance the soundtrack; the audio clips on A4, for example, are a radio call being
received by the FBI agents, and there are also music and sound effects on A6-A8 that
drown out Agent Jenkins’s final lines.
To get a better sense of how the audio is currently working, you will mute some of
the tracks.
7 Click the Mute button for tracks A4, A7, A8, and A9, and then play the timeline again to
preview the scene.

Notice how the timeline has been arranged with each character in the scene having
their own audio track; even the assistant who has only one line in this scene has a
track dedicated to that line. This is to aid the audio mixing process, which you will get
to in good time.
464
When Should You Start Mixing?
Up to now, you have learned how to use DaVinci Resolve to edit audio at the subframe level,
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

adjust audio levels, add fades and Fairlight FX. However, most audio work occurs toward the
end of the editing process, and that’s why this lesson is the penultimate chapter of this book.

While you will no doubt make basic adjustments to audio levels throughout the editing
process, you don’t really want to spend too long perfecting the audio mix until the scene has
been edited. This is the point that’s usually referred to as picture lock, where the director or
client is happy with the work so far and the fine-tuning can begin. If you start mixing the audio
too early, you may find yourself in a position where you’ll have to cut out a part of the scene, or
maybe the entire scene completely, in which case all your hard work and the time taken to
achieve it will be wasted. This is also the reason why grading the picture also occurs once the
scene is picture locked and no further changes should be made.

In practice though, while picture lock may be aspired to, many edits may need further tweaking
after a mix or grade has been started (or in extreme cases, completed). In these cases, the
benefit of having the editing, mixing, and grading tools together inside the same application
becomes obvious, as Resolve allows you to move seamlessly from one process to another and
back again just by clicking the appropriate page.

The vast majority of the timelines you will work on will have three main audio components:
dialogue (words spoken by actors, interviewees, or in voiceover), effects (sounds that occur
onscreen or offscreen, such as a door slamming, the tapping of an iPhone’s keyboard, an
aircraft approaching from a distance, or wolves howling in the wilderness), and music
(which sets the tone of the scene).
Quite often there might be several clips across different audio tracks for the same type of
audio. For example, this timeline has four tracks for dialogue clips: one for each of the
speaking actors and a fourth for the radio operator’s lines. There are four effects tracks:
one for the audience applause at the start of the scene, one for the sounds of the crowd in
the room, and then two more for the crashes and bangs at the end of the scene. There’s
also one music track for the mixed score.
The audio in each of these groups can be internal to the scene or external. Internal audio
(often referred to as diegetic) comes from a source the viewer can place somewhere within
the scene, such as a specific speaker or music playing from a radio. It doesn’t always need
to be emanating from a visible source to be classed as diegetic sound; the sounds of cars,
buses, sirens, etc., can indicate that the scene is taking place at a busy city intersection,
even though not a single vehicle may be seen onscreen! External audio (called non-diegetic)
is anything in the soundtrack that couldn’t possibly come from anything within the onscreen
world, such as a narrator’s voiceover or music to enhance the audience’s emotion.
Again, this scene contains a mixture of diegetic and non-diegetic audio. Can you identify
which is which?
The applause as the doctor walks off the stage in the scene’s first shot is obviously meant 465
to be made by a large crowd of people she’s just been addressing, while the sounds of
people speaking in the background are made by the extras surrounding the doctor and

Balancing the Dialogue Clips

the agents throughout the rest of the scene. (This walla track—the non-descript audio of a
crowd—also has the advantage of providing a consistent background noise, or room tone,
that helps fill the gaps in the soundtrack left during the dialogue clips.) However, the
sounds of impacts and the music toward the end of the scene are obviously meant only
for the audiences’ ears to provide an emotional resonance to the end of the scene.

Balancing the Dialogue Clips

Of the three general types of audio, probably the most important one is dialogue: if your
audience cannot hear what’s being said, they will not be able to follow the story, whether
that is the story told in a drama scene such as in this lesson or through an interview, as with
the Citizen Chain or Age of Airplanes footage you have edited in previous lessons. Think
how much information is communicated in what the people onscreen are saying. The only
time when dialogue is not the most important element of the soundtrack is for a video that
is cut entirely to music (such as the Jitterbug Riot footage in the Multicamera lesson) or
when the dialogue is purposefully buried in a mix.
With that in mind, it’s not surprising to learn that dialogue is usually the best place to start
when it comes to the audio mixing process.
1 Play the timeline again, and this time listen carefully to the dialogue clips.
The audio for this scene has been recorded quite well, and the editing so far means
just the parts of the clips with spoken words being included. However, you need to set
the dialogue clips to the same general level.
2 At the top right of the interface, click the Mixer button.

The edit page audio Mixer opens to the right of the timeline. If you don’t see the Mixer at
full width, drag the left-hand edge of the Mixer to the left in order to reveal all the controls.
466
TIP  If you need more space along the bottom of the interface for the timeline
and the Mixer, you can use the Shrink button to the left of the Media Pool
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

button in the interface to use a half-height media pool.

The Mixer contains a strip of controls for each audio track in your timeline, and an
additional strip for the Main, which is the master control for the entire timeline. In
DaVinci Resolve, each audio clip can be adjusted within the track, as you have been
doing so far. Each track can then be further adjusted by using the Mixer before the
output of the track is passed to the Main output. It is the output from the Main that you
hear playing through your speakers or headphones. Any adjustments made to the
track controls in the Mixer affect any clips on that track.
3 Play the timeline once more, and this time keep an eye on the audio levels for each
track as the clips play.

You should see that the levels for Doctor K’s audio clips are a lot lower than those
of Agent J.
 467
How Much Should You Adjust Your Clip’s Audio Levels?
The Mixer in DaVinci Resolve also gives you a good indication as to where your audio levels

Balancing the Dialogue Clips

should be set, with each meter showing a range of levels color-coded in green, yellow, or red.
For your current purposes, it really doesn’t matter what level you choose as long as you are
consistent—that is, you set the volume for the clips on the same track to the same level.

A good guide for dialogue levels is to set them within the yellow area, which is between -18
dBFS and -8 dBFS on the audio Mixer. Quiet, softly spoken lines might be toward the bottom
end of this range, and shouted lines will be toward the higher end. A good, general guide for
dialogue levels is to set them around the -12 dBFS mark.

At this point you might be tempted to reach for the audio level control for the track, but
you first need to adjust the clip levels as much as you can; just because one clip is at
one level, doesn’t mean all of them are.
4 Play the first dialogue clip, which is on track A1, and look at the levels displayed in the
track’s control strip in the Mixer.

The clip’s levels barely peak above -20 dBFS! This clip is a good candidate for
increased audio levels.
468 5 Increase the volume of the clip in the timeline until the tooltip reads about +6 dB and
play the clip once more.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

The volume of the clip has increased and now sits in the yellow, peaking around -15
dBFS and sounds much better compared to the following clip of Agent J.
Normalizing Audio Levels 469

At this point, you now need to balance all the dialogue clips, so they play at a similar level.

Balancing the Dialogue Clips

Remember, your audience must clearly hear each line of dialogue. You can, however,
employ normalization across the dialogue clips to help with this process. It’s not a “Get Out
of Jail Free” card in that it doesn’t necessarily fix all your audio levels, but it can help
streamline the process on many occasions.
1 Click and drag to select all the clips on the first three audio tracks, A1, A2, and A3.

2 Right-click any of the selected clips and choose Normalize Audio Levels.
The Normalize Audio Levels window appears.
3 Leave the Normalization Mode set to Sample Peak Program, set the Target Level to
-12 dBFS and the Set Level option to Independent. Click Normalize.

The selected audio clips have their volume adjusted as indicated by the change in the
waveforms. Notice how the waveforms for the different clips are now all similar sizes,
indicating that they are roughly the same level.
470 4 Once more, play the timeline and see the change in the audio levels in the Mixer.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

Now all the levels seem to be playing at a much more consistent level. However, as
mentioned earlier, the process of normalizing the audio levels isn’t a fix in itself; it just
gets you in the ballpark. You now need to go through and ensure that the clips’ levels
are where you want them.
5 Play the third clip on A1. This is where the doctor mutters to her assistant.
The clip has been raised to the level you specified when you normalized the clips,
but it’s totally unsuitable for this particular clip.
6 Lower the clip’s volume curve to about 10 dB, which puts the clip at the lower values of 471
the yellow target area on the meters.

Replacing Lines from Other Takes

You can always refine the levels further by adding keyframes.
7 As the clip is still a little noisy at the end, add a couple of keyframes after the doctor
has delivered her line by Option-clicking (macOS) or Alt-clicking (Windows) the volume
curve and lowering the portion after the second keyframe to about 4 dB to push the
rustling noises back into the overall mix.

Continue to balance each of the dialogue clips across the first three tracks so they are
consistent throughout the scene.

Replacing Lines from Other Takes

A common problem that editors often face is that a take might be great visually, but the
audio might be less than optimal. Indeed, many takes are often chosen initially on the basis
of their visuals rather than their audio. In these cases, it’s often easier to replace part of the
audio in the timeline with the audio from another take.
1 Move your playhead to the second red marker in the timeline.

TIP  Pressing Shift-Up Arrow or Shift-Down Arrow jumps the playhead to the
previous or next marker, respectively.

2 Press / (slash) to Play Around the current playhead position.

Ouch! It sounds as though the doctor hits herself as she brings her hand down! It’s
very distracting but probably very difficult to edit out (which should have been your
first instinct). Instead, you will use Resolve’s audio track layers to replace the line with
another take.
472 3 Click the Detail Zoom button to zoom in on the current playhead position.
4 Choose View > Show Audio Track Layers.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

All the timeline tracks appear to shrink in height. But look closer, and you will see a
space appear above the clips for each track , separated by a thin dividing line. These
are the audio track layers.

NOTE  Audio track layers function very similar to the way you work with video
tracks. You can add any amount of audio clips to the audio track’s layers, and
they will appear one above the other. However, only the topmost layer is the
clip that plays, similar to how a cutaway works on the V2 track.
It is always the topmost clip that has priority; you can’t “mix it” with a clip on a
lower level, although you can use audio fades on the uppermost clips to fade
them in from a lower clip.

5 In the media pool, select the Video bin in the Dialogue Clips bin and double-click the
clip 05_Wide_Agents_Take_1_ to open it in the source viewer.
6 Right-click the blue duration marker in the source viewer and choose “Set In and Out
from Duration Marker” to add the required In and Out points.
7 Press Option-/ (slash) on macOS or Alt-/ (slash) on Windows to play from the In to the 473
Out point.

Replacing Lines from Other Takes

This is a clean version of the same line of dialogue.
8 In the timeline, deselect the track source controls for A2.

9 Use the source viewer Overlay button to drag the audio clip into A1 above the existing
clip (the doctor’s lines are on the first source channel).
474 10 Trim the new clip so it starts at the waveform where the doctor begins speaking and
align it with the beginning of the original clip on the track layer below.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

11 Press / (slash) to preview the new line of dialogue.

The clap has vanished!
12 Click and drag the original dialogue clip up and above the new clip to swap their order
in the track layers.

13 Press / (slash) again to preview the original take.

14 Change the order again, so the new take sits above the old take on the track layers.

You’ll probably get away with using the audio from this different take, as the actress
playing the doctor delivered her lines at roughly the same speed and it’s doubtful anyone
would ever spot a discrepancy between her lips and the words spoken. However, if you
look closely, the waveforms of the uppermost layer don’t fully align with the original
take’s audio. But you can easily fix this by adjusting the speed of the audio clip.
15 Right-click the topmost audio clip and choose Change Clip Speed.
16 Change the speed to 120%. Ensure that Ripple Sequence is not selected but Pitch 475
Correction is selected and click OK.

Replacing Lines from Other Takes

The speed of the audio clip is adjusted, and the audio pitch is automatically adjusted
so the doctor’s new audio is now in perfect sync and she doesn’t sound like she’s
inhaled helium.

TIP  You can also use the Elastic Wave function in the Fairlight page to
manually adjust the speed of an audio clip and create variable speed
adjustments for audio clips without adjusting the pitch of the audio clip.

17 Trim any excess audio from the newly added clip, and then choose View > Show Audio
Track Layers to hide the track layers.
476 18 Preview the audio clip again, adjusting the level to balance this new clip with the rest of
the doctor’s dialogue clips.
19 Select the Full Extent Zoom and adjust the audio track heights so you can see all the
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

audio tracks in the timeline again.

Audio track layers are a useful feature of working with audio in DaVinci Resolve. They can
be used for many different things, such as quickly switching between different voiceover
takes or auditioning different music cues for a scene. Used this way, they are very similar to
using the Take Selector, which cannot be enabled for audio clips.

Enhancing the Scene

Now that the dialogue has been balanced and repaired, it’s time to turn your attention to
the sound design for this scene. In the script, this scene is set during a break at a busy
technology conference. While the Atmosphere wild sound clip on A6 offers some sense of
the other people in this room, it’s supposed to be in a room full of people chatting, and
there’s a distinct lack of atmosphere, which you will now inject. To begin with, you will
duplicate the Atmosphere wild sound clip to increase the number of people in the room.
1 Right-click on the timeline header controls for any track and choose Add Tracks.

The Add Tracks window opens.

You don’t want to add any extra video tracks, but you do want to add an extra audio
track into which you will duplicate the mono Atmosphere wild sound clip.
2 Change the Number of Video Tracks to 0 and leave the Number of Audio Tracks set to 477
1. From the Insert Position pop-up menu, select Below Walla and set the Audio Track
Type to Mono. Click Add Tracks.

Enhancing the Scene

An additional mono track is added below the Atmosphere wild sound clip’s track.

NOTE  You can always reposition a track’s position in the timeline by right-
clicking the track header and choosing Move Track Up or Move Track Down,
as appropriate. Alternatively, you can use the Index panel in the Fairlight page
to drag any number of selected audio tracks to a different order.

3 In the Mixer, double-click the new Audio 7 track name and type WALLA.
478
NOTE  “Walla” is a term used for this type of general, non-descript crowd sound.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

4 In the timeline, right-click the track header for A7 and choose Change Track Color >
Chocolate.

5 Press and hold the Option key (macOS) or the Alt key (Windows), select the
Atmosphere wild sound clip in A6, and drag a copy of the clip into A7.

TIP  If you don’t have snapping enabled before you start duplicating the clip,
press and hold Shift together with the above step before you release the mouse
to ensure that you constrain the horizontal position of the clip in the timeline.

Listen to the change this makes. Maybe you’ll agree that it doesn’t sound as though
you’ve increased the amount of people in the crowd—rather, they are just louder.
6 Press T to activate Trim Edit mode and slip one of the two Atmosphere wild sound 479
clips by about -10 seconds.

Panning Tracks in Acoustic Space

NOTE  Slipping the footage backward results in using a later portion
of the clip.

7 Finally, right-click either of the Atmosphere wild sound clips and choose Change Clip
Speed. Change the Speed to 90% and uncheck the Pitch Correction option before
reviewing the changes.

You’re getting there. By offsetting the timing and speed of one of the clips, it sounds as
though there are so many more people in the room now, even though only a handful of
people are actually onscreen.
Congratulations! You have increased the crowd size without having to pay for additional
actors. The producer will be pleased.

Panning Tracks in Acoustic Space

Pan controls enable you to choose where a track’s audio is within a panoramic sound field.
They enable you to place the spatial arrangement of audio elements just as a
cinematographer composes the visuals of a shot. Mono tracks can be precisely located to
sound as if they come from an offscreen source or from somewhere within the frame.
DaVinci Resolve includes advanced pan controls in the Mixer that support both 2D (stereo)
and 3D (surround) audio placement.
480 In this exercise, you’ll use the pan controls in the Mixer to “widen” the walla tracks, so they
don’t “crowd” the dialogue tracks.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

NOTE  If you have been using your built-in computer speakers or an inexpensive
single speaker, you are well advised to use headphones for this panning exercise
to fully appreciate the changes you will make.

1 Return your playhead to the start of the scene and play again, listening carefully with
your eyes closed. Can you pinpoint where the dialogue and walla is all coming from?
Your eyes may tell you where things are onscreen, but when you close them
everything seems to be coming from directly in front of you. Of course, the crowd
should be all around you.
Because the audio is playing from a series of mono tracks, the sound from all these
tracks is playing equally from both output channels in the timeline, and therefore both
of your speakers. This makes them sound centered within the sound environment.
2 Continue playing the scene and, using the Mixer’s Pan controls, drag the blue handle
for the A6 track to the upper-left corner of the panning control in the control strip.

Can you hear the change? It sounds like you’re pushing part of the crowd to the edge
of the room.
3 Drag the A7 track’s blue panning handle to the upper-right corner of the control.

4 Play the timeline from the beginning to hear the walla tracks panned to the far left and
right of the acoustic space.
 In just a matter of seconds, you filled the far reaches of the acoustic space with the 481
walla, making the crowd seem to spread out within a much larger room. Crucially,
you’ve also moved the sound of the crowd away from the actors’ audio tracks, thereby

Panning Tracks in Acoustic Space

making it easier to hear the all-important dialogue.
To take a closer look at the Pan controls, you can open them in a separate window.
5 In the Mixer, double-click the Pan controls for the A6 track to open the Audio
Pan window.

The Pan controls automatically work with either 2D (stereo) or 3D (surround) panning
depending on your setup and project. The center of the control represents the
acoustic center from the audience’s perspective. The small letters F, R, B, and L—
positioned clockwise around the space in the top, right, bottom, and left positions—
represent the Front, Right, Back, and Left positions in the panoramic field, respectively.
Where you place audio tracks within the panoramic space will reflect where the
audience will locate each audio source. The Spread control is for linked sources, such
as stereo clips. Divergence determines the spread of the audio signal to additional
speakers in a surround mix, and Boom determines how much of a track’s sound is sent
to the low-frequency effect (LFE) speaker for a 2.1 or 5.1 channel Main.
482 Look carefully to see that the A6 track is currently panned to the front-left position.
Let’s relocate it to the back-left position to hear the difference.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

NOTE  You won’t hear the sound change from front to back when you are
listening through stereo speakers or headphones. Also, if you are monitoring
audio through an audio interface and mixer that outputs only left and right
channels, then you may not hear any output that is not panned to the front left,
front center, or front right.

6 Start playback and drag the blue Pan handle to the lower-left corner of the pan area.
Pan the track to the center and then to the right. Return the control to the back left.
Could you hear the crowd move around the room as you panned? You can choose
where to place the crowd.
7 Use the Pan controls in the A6 and A7 tracks to place the walla tracks wherever you’d
like in the panoramic field. If you aren’t sure of their placements, try putting them in the
far left and far right between the back and center locations.
8 In the Mixer, change the name of the A6 and A7 tracks to WALLA-L and WALLA-R,
as appropriate.

When you’re finished panning tracks to compose the acoustic space within your scene, you
can move on to finessing the levels of those tracks. In audio postproduction, volume
control is an ongoing process right up until you output the final mix.
 483
Extra Credit
To practice the above steps, repeat the process on the opening applause clip:

Adding Layers for More Atmosphere

• Create a mono track below the existing STAGE SFX track. Rename this track STAGE-R
and color code it Teal to match the A5 track.

• Rename the STAGE SFX track STAGE-L.

• Duplicate the audio of the 01_Outro shot from previous scene clip to this new track.

• Slip the applause audio of one of the clips and adjust the track pan so that the applause
fills the room.

• Try adjusting the speed of one of the applause clips, with or without pitch correction.

Adding Layers for More Atmosphere

The script for this scene calls for the FBI agents to interrupt the doctor at a high-brow
conference with her colleagues. Now that you have increased the number of people in
attendance, it’s time to add a little more nuance to the scene.
1 Select the Foley bin in the media pool.

NOTE  In filmmaking parlance, foley is the term used for any audio added to a
film’s soundtrack that recreates diegetic sounds, such as footsteps on different
surfaces, traffic sounds, the rustle of clothing, or the swish of a lightsaber.
Named after Jack Foley, the pioneer of recording and synchronizing such
“everyday” sounds for films, it also gives rise to the terms foley studio, where
such sounds are often created and recorded, and foley artist, the person who
actually performs and/or records the sounds.
484 This bin contains the original Atmosphere wild sound clip, together with another audio
clip, Piano.aif.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

2 Double-click the Piano.aif clip to load it in the source viewer and play the clip to
listen to it.

This clip is a stereo recording of a piano being played in a studio. A portion of the clip
has already been marked with In and Out points. You will edit this clip into a new track
to add to the overall ambience of the scene, as if there was a pianist somewhere
offscreen tinkling the ivories for the delectation of the conference attendees.
3 Right-click any of the track headers in the timeline and choose Add Tracks. Change 485
the number of Video Tracks to 0, change the Audio Tracks Insert Position to Below
Walla-R. Leave the Audio Track Type set to Stereo. Click Add Tracks.

Adding Layers for More Atmosphere

A new, stereo audio track is added, labeled A9.

NOTE  Because you’re adding a stereo clip to this timeline, it makes sense
that it should be added to a stereo track to preserve the stereo effect in the
mix. If you add a stereo clip to a mono track, only the first of the two stereo
channels are used, and if you add a mono clip to a stereo track, the mono
audio will only be played out of the first (usually left-output) channel.
Incorrectly created track types can be adjusted by right-clicking the track
header and choosing Change Track Type To, and incorrect audio
configurations for clips can be adjusted in Clip Attributes.
486 4 In the Mixer, change the name of the new A9 track to Piano and right-click the A9 track
header in the timeline and choose Change Track Color > Tan.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

5 Click the Track Destination control for A9 to target the new track.

NOTE  Default keyboard shortcuts exist to quickly target any of the first eight
video or audio tracks in the timeline (viewable by choosing Timeline > Track
Destination Selection). For any track numbers above this, it’s often easier to
target them by clicking with the mouse.

You will now use the duration of the clips on either of the walla tracks to quickly mark a
duration for your piano audio.
6 Select the clip on the A8 track and choose Mark > Mark Selection or press Shift-A.
In and Out points are added to the timeline for the duration of the selected clip.
7 Perform an overwrite edit. 487

Adding Layers for More Atmosphere

NOTE  If necessary, press Option-X (macOS) or Alt-X (Windows) to remove the
In and Out points from the timeline.

8 Increase the size of the A9 track so you can see the waveform clearly and lower the
Piano clip’s volume by -25 dB to bring its level down to around the same level as the
walla audio (using the levels displayed for A9 in the Mixer as a guide).

9 Using the Fade handles, add a short ten-frame fade at the start of the Piano clip
and a 2-second fade at the end, changing the curve of the fade-out to create a nice
logarithmic fade for the piano.

Perfect. Now your conference crowd has some entertainment to listen to while the doctor
and the FBI agents discuss things.

Filling the Room

The piano has added some much needed ambiance to the scene, but it still feels a little dry,
as it was recorded in a sound studio with lots of foam cones on the wall that reduced any
unwanted sound reflections from the studio walls. This is ideal for the foley clips because you
can then add your own reverb to the audio using the built-in Fairlight FX to suit the scene.
488 1 Click the Effects Library and select Fairlight FX from the Audio FX category.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

2 Locate the Reverb effect and drag it to the A9 track header in the timeline.

The Reverb FX controls window opens automatically.

3 From the presets pop-up menu in the top-left of the controls window, choose the 489
Concert Hall preset.

Adding Layers for More Atmosphere

4 Solo track A9 and play the scene back to hear the newly created sound reflections of
the piano bouncing around the room.

TIP  Use the red active switch in the top-left of the Reverb controls to disable
and enable the effect to hear the audio clip with and without the
effect applied.

5 Close the Reverb effect controls window and un-solo the A9 track.

NOTE  In the edit page, to access the controls for an audio effect applied to a
track, click the track header in the timeline and open the Effects Inspector.
490 Adding an effect to a track rather than individual clips is an easy way to make sure that any
clips on any part of the track will have the reverb applied. You can tell if a track has an
effect applied to it by the FX badge in the track header in the timeline and the top of the
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

track’s controls in the Mixer.

Creating a Radio Effect

Now that you have some idea of the sort of work that goes into a scene’s sound design, it’s
time to turn your attention to adjusting the audio that is supposedly coming from the
agents’ radios. In this case, you will apply some adjustments to the clips’ EQ before
changing the track’s level for the mix.
1 Move your playhead to the first marker in the timeline.
2 Click the Detail Zoom button or adjust the timeline zoom so you can clearly see the
first three clips on the A4 track.
3 Click the A4 Mute button to unmute the track and click the A4 Solo button to solo the
same track.

4 Press / (slash) to play around the marker.

This part of the timeline has a sound effect at the beginning and end of the line from
the radio operator to indicate the radios receiving a signal. The actual lines from the
radio operator were spoken by an actor and recorded directly into Resolve. However,
you’ll need to manipulate the audio to make it sound as though you’re hearing this over
a radio rather than through a studio microphone.

NOTE  See The Beginners Guide to DaVinci Resolve 17 for more information
on recording audio using the Fairlight page.

5 In the timeline, select the Dispatch Recording.wav clip on A4.

6 Open the Inspector, click the Audio tab, and scroll down until you see the 491
Equalizer controls.

Creating a Radio Effect

In DaVinci Resolve, each audio clip has a set of controls that includes a four-band
parametric equalizer that can be used for boosting or attenuating (reducing) different
ranges of frequencies of the clip.
7 Enable the Equalizer for the selected clip.
8 Press Command-/ (slash) on macOS or Ctrl-/ (slash) on Windows to enable looped
playback, and then press / (slash) to play around the marker. Listen to the line a few
times to hear how it sounds.
492 9 In the Audio Inspector, move the Band 1 control right to about 650 Hz to cut the lower
frequencies of this clip.
10 Move the Band 4 control to the left to around 1.5 kHz to cut the higher-end frequencies
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

of the voice.

You have limited the range of frequencies in the voice to just the midrange, and it’s
already starting to sound a little tinny and artificial.
11 Drag the Band 3 control to the area between the Band 1 and 4 controls (around 1 kHz)
and then drag it upward by around +10 dB.

This boosts the 1 kHz frequencies by 10 dB.

12 Play the clip back to review the changes you’ve made. 493

You can hear how the voice actor’s dialogue has lost the warmth of the lower
frequencies and the brightness of the upper frequencies, making it seem like it’s

Creating a Radio Effect

emanating from a radio’s tinny loudspeaker.

Controlling Dynamic Range

To further refine the artificiality of the voice, you can reduce the dynamic range of the
audio levels. Dynamic range refers to the difference in levels between the quietest part
of an audio clip and its loudest part.
1 Return the playhead to the first marker in the timeline and press / (slash) to play around
that frame and watch the audio meters in the Mixer for track A4.
When you play this clip, you will see that the voice starts off around -18 dBFS but then
jumps as high as -10 dBFS when the actor says “caution.”

This is a natural effect of the emphasis and inflection the speaker puts in their voice.
This is also what you’ll see during any kind of dialogue, whether it’s delivered by an
actor, an interviewee, or voiceover artist. To reduce the dynamic range and add a
further level of artificiality to these lines of dialogue, you can add a compressor, which
will limit the dynamic range of the clip by squeezing the levels from the top.
494 2 Open the Effects Library, select Fairlight FX, and locate the Vocal Channel effect.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

3 Drag the Vocal Channel effect to the first Dispatch Recording.wav clip in the timeline.

The effect’s controls open automatically.

The Vocal Channel effect has two parts to it. On the left side is (what should now be)
a familiar set of EQ controls. The High Pass control can be enabled to remove the low
frequencies. The Equalizer controls provide three additional bands of adjustment,
similar to the EQ controls in the audio Inspector.
On the right side is the compressor.
4 Click the switch to enable the compressor. 495

Creating a Radio Effect

The compressor controls become active, and the graph indicates how the settings are
affecting the audio.
5 Press / (slash) to play around the marker again while watching the Output meter.
You should see that by simply enabling the compressor in the Vocal Channel effect,
you have prevented the audio from peaking at -10 dBFS. Instead, it now peaks at
around -12 dBFS. It’s a minor change, but you can go further.
496 6 In the compressor controls, leave the Threshold set to -25.
Threshold is the level at which the compressor begins to take effect. Any audio below this
level will not be affected by the compressor. As the quieter lines are delivered around
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

-18 dBFS, a Threshold setting of -25 is more than enough to include all the dialogue.
7 Increase the Ratio control to 7.
The Ratio is amount of compression being applied. The default value of 1.5 means that
for every 1.5 dB above the threshold level that the audio levels rise, the compressor will
only let it rise by 1 dB, hence the reason why the peak dropped from about -10 dBFS to
-12 dBFS as soon as you enabled the effect. Pushing the Ratio to 7 means that for every
7 dB, the audio goes above -25 dBFS (the current Threshold value), and then the
compressor will only allow it to rise by 1 dB. This is a rather extreme setting but will
work for this example.
8 Press / (slash) again to see the results in the Output meter.
 Now you’ll see that the dynamic range of this clip is all but eliminated. The audio level 497
has been compressed downward from the top. The result is that it will now sound much
quieter. To compensate for this, you can use the Gain control to bring the level back up

Creating a Radio Effect

to where you need it.
9 Set the Gain control to about 6. This returns the radio dialogue to an appropriate level
by adding 6 dB of gain.
10 Finally, set the Reaction control to 0 (which means the compressor kicks in
immediately) before closing the Vocal Channel controls.

Copying and Pasting EQ and Fairlight FX

Having adjusted the frequencies and compressed the dynamic range of this first line of
radio dialogue, you now need to apply the same adjustments to the second line.
1 Select the Dispatch Recording.wav to which you’ve applied the EQ and choose Edit >
Copy or press Command-C (macOS) or Ctrl-C (Windows).
2 Select the second line of dialogue in A4 (the 5th clip in the track) and choose Edit >
Paste Attributes or press Option-V (macOS) or Alt-V (Windows).

The Paste Attributes window appears.

498 3 Select the Plugin and Equalizer settings and click Apply.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

The Vocal Channel effect and the EQ settings from the first line of dialogue are applied
to the second line of dialogue.
4 Place your timeline playhead over the second line of radio dialogue and press / (slash)
to hear the change.

Setting Track Levels

The radio dialogue is coming along nicely, but now you need to listen to it alongside the
other dialogue tracks in this scene. In this case, the radio dialogue doesn’t need to be
heard clearly; it’s more to add a sense of urgency to the FBI agents’ enquiries.
1 Return your timeline playhead to the first red marker.
2 Click the Solo button for A4 to un-solo the track.
3 Press / (slash) to preview the line of radio dialogue as part of the overall sound design. 499

The radio dialogue is in the mix, but it’s competing with the actual dialogue you need the
audience to focus on, so you need to attenuate (lower) its levels so it’s less intrusive.

Creating a Radio Effect

However, the dialogue clips are actually just two elements of the radio track, with the
other being the clicking sounds of the radio connecting and disconnecting. If you were
to adjust the level of the dialogue clips themselves, you’d also need to lower each of
the clicking sounds, too. This is why it’s now easier to adjust the level for all of track A4.
4 In the Mixer, use the Level slider to lower the audio levels for A4 by about -6 dB.

TIP  You can see the relative adjustment you’re making to the track’s levels at
the top of the slider controls.

5 Once you have made your change, press / (slash) once more to hear the results.
The radio dialogue is now better integrated into the scene without you having to adjust each
of the clips’ levels individually. This also demonstrates the advantages of having tracks
dedicated to specific types of audio and how you can then use the Mixer’s track levels to
further refine the levels for any track once the individual clips have been correctly balanced.
500
Simplifying the Mix
Now it’s time to think about how each track needs to be adjusted in the Mixer. Because you
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

already know that each of the dialogue clips is at the right levels, you shouldn’t need to do
too much to those tracks. However, you might need to make further adjustments to each of
the “atmos” tracks—specifically, the walla and piano tracks A7, A8, and A9. While this is still
a relatively simple scene with a limited number of tracks, it can still be advantageous to
simplify this process by creating submixes.
Submixes provide a way in which you can add a further level of control to your audio mixing
by routing different tracks through a bus in the Mixer, allowing you to adjust the output
levels of those routed tracks with one set of controls.
To explore this process, you will create three submixes for this scene’s dialogue, including
both diegetic effects and non-diegetic effects (including music).

TIP  You can create up to a total of 24 submix buses, which can then be used to
control the audio from multiple tracks, vastly simplifying the process of mixing very
complex timelines.

1 Choose Fairlight > Bus Format.

The Bus Format window opens.
 501
NOTE  Even though you are on the edit page, you can still access some
Fairlight features directly through the Fairlight menu. However, many options

Simplifying the Mix

will be unavailable unless you’re on the Fairlight page itself.

2 Click Sub to add your first submix bus.

“Sub 1” is added to the list of buses.

Since you’ll use this new submix for the dialogue tracks, it’s best to rename the bus at
this stage.
3 Click the Name field for “Sub 1” and type DIAL.

NOTE  “DIAL” refers to “dialogue.” Short names for tracks are often useful
since they’re easier to read in the Mixer or the track headers.

4 Leave the Format set to mono (this is for dialogue, after all) but change the color
to Orange.
502
NOTE  Because a Mixer bus doesn’t contain any audio clips, changing its
color really only has the benefit of identifying it in the Mixer.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

You now need to add two additional submix buses for the diegetic effects, and the
non-diegetic effects and music.
5 Click the Sub button twice more to add a Sub 2 and Sub 3.
6 Change the name of Sub 2 to SFX and change the name of Sub 3 to MUSIC.
7 Change the format of both Sub 2 and Sub 3 to Stereo.
8 Change the color of Sub 2 to Lime and the color of Sub 3 to Teal.

9 Click OK to save the changes and close the Bus Format window.
10 In the Mixer, drag the dividing area next to the Main 1 channel strip to reveal the 503
controls for each of the submixes.

Simplifying the Mix

Assigning Tracks to Busses
You have successfully created three additional submixes for this timeline. However, now
you need to route the audio for each of the tracks to the appropriate submix bus.
1 Choose Fairlight > Bus Assign to open the Bus Assign window.
504 The Bus Assign window is used to view and change the destination of the audio once
it leaves a track. By default, all audio tracks are automatically routed to the Main 1
output, abbreviated as M1). This is ultimately what you are listening to when the
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

timeline plays.
2 Click Un-Assign All.

Now the tracks are no longer assigned to any destination, so you won’t be able to hear
them, as they are no longer being sent to the M1 output bus.
3 In the Busses section at the top of the Bus Assign window, click the S1:DIAL bus to
select it.
4 In the Available Tracks area, click each of the dialogue tracks in your timeline: Doctor, 505
Agent J, Assistant, and Radio.

Simplifying the Mix

S1 appears below the name of each track to identify which bus it is being routed to.

NOTE  Tracks can be sent to multiple buses simultaneously, so they might

have more than one destination set.

5 In the Busses section, click the S2:SFX button to select the SFX submix bus.
506 6 Click the tracks that contain diegetic audio: STAGE, WALLA-L, WALLA-R, and PIANO.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

7 Click the S3 bus to select the final submix bus for non-diegetic effects and music, and
then click the SFX-1, SFX-2, and MUSIC tracks to assign them to S3.

TIP  To remove a track from a specific bus, click the bus from the Available
Busses section of the Bus Format window, and then click the track. Tracks
already assigned to the selected bus will be removed.

Lastly, you still won’t hear anything from your timeline unless you route the submixes
themselves to the stereo Main 1 bus.
8 In the Busses section, click the M1:Main 1 button, and then click the DIAL, SFX, and 507
MUSIC buttons in the Available Tracks section.

Mixing with the Mixer

9 Once you have assigned each of the tracks to the correct submix, click Close.

Mixing with the Mixer

Wow! It might seem like a lot of hard work, but now everything should start to pay off, as it’s
now easier to mix the audio for the scene just by using the controls for each of the submixes.
1 In the mixer, unmute A10, A11, and A12.

TIP  Shift-clicking any muted track will unmute all currently muted tracks.

2 Play through the timeline from the beginning, listening to the various elements in the
soundtrack.
What are your ears telling you? Most likely, you’ll identify that the sound effects and
music toward the end are far too loud!
508 3 Play the timeline again, and this time use the Music submix slider to bring the level of
the music down by about -10 dB (or whatever level you think is suitable that you can
hear the dialogue at the scene’s climax).
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

4 Using the same technique, adjust the level of the SFX submix to reduce the sounds of
the walla and piano together (if in doubt, try about -6 dB).

As you can see (and hear), using the submixes has made it so much easier to mix
the audio for the scene. What’s more, if you need any greater degree of control (for
instance, you may think that the radio dialogue track needs further changes), then you
can always adjust the level of a specific track, or you can even go back into the clips
themselves and further refine their individual levels if you need to!
Adding More Mains 509

Now that you’ve seen the power of busses in DaVinci Resolve, mixing the audio in your

Adding More Mains

timeline should be so much easier. But there is one other type of bus that an editor should
be aware of: Mains.
Mains are the means by which all the different audio, across all the timeline tracks, leaves
the timeline to be played out of the speakers attached to your computer. By default, all
timelines are created with a single stereo main labeled Main 1. This means that all the audio
in the current timeline is mixed down to play out of one of two output channels. But your
timeline can have multiple mains out for different mixes.
In the next steps, you will create two additional mains buses for this timeline: the first is for
delivering an M&E (music and effects) version of the soundtrack, and the second will
enable you to deliver a 5.1 surround sound mix of the same soundtrack!
1 Choose Fairlight > Bus Format to reopen the Bus Format window containing your
current submixes.
2 Click Main twice to add two additional mains buses.

NOTE  You can have up to eight mains per timeline in total.

3 Change the name for Main 2 to M&E, the format to Stereo, and the color to Purple.
4 Change the name for Main 3 to 5.1, the format to 5.1, and the color to Violet.
510 5 Click OK to confirm your changes.
The new M2 and M3 channels appear in the Mixer, but at the moment nothing is being
routed to them.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

6 Choose Fairlight > Bus Assign.

7 In the Busses section of the Bus Assign window, select the main M2:M&E.
This main is for the M&E version of the soundtrack—everything the main stereo mix
has on Main 1, except the dialogue. This makes it easier for the film to be dubbed into
another language if required.
8 With the M2:M&E main selected, click on the SFX and Music submixes from the
Available Tracks section.

Because you have already set up your submixes previously, you don’t have to route
every single track to the new main, just the appropriate submixes.
9 Select the M3:5.1 main from the Busses.
10 Click the DIAL, SFX, and MUSIC submixes in the Available Tracks section to send them 511
to the third main for this timeline.

Adding More Mains

11 Click Close to close the Bus Assign window.

Monitoring the Different Busses

To listen to the different mixes from the same timeline, you just need to change the bus you
are listening to, which you can do directly in the edit page.
1 Return your playhead to the start of the timeline and begin playing the scene.
2 From the Control Room pop-up menu above the Mixer, select M&E.

This is the soundtrack, minus the dialogue tracks.

3 Select DIAL from the Control Room pop-up menu.
You’re now listening to just the dialogue submix for this scene.
512 4 Change the Control Room to 5.1.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

You’re now listening to the same mix play as a surround mix. Unfortunately, unless you
have a surround system attached to your system and set up correctly for Resolve to
use, you won’t hear any change, but you can see the meters moving in the Mixer.
However, you’ll need to make some further changes to how the audio is handled within
the timeline, as three channels in the 5.1 main are not currently being used. This is
because the submixes for the effects and music are both stereo.
5 Select Fairlight > Bus Format to reopen the Bus Format window. 513

6 Change the format for Sub 2 and Sub 3 to 5.1 and click OK.

Adding More Mains

By changing the submixes from stereo to 5.1, it now means that any audio using the
surround panners will have the audio correctly routed.
514 7 Play the timeline again.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

Now you can see that the two rear channels of the 5.1 main are being used (even if you
can’t actually hear them), but this is because you originally set the pan for the walla
tracks left and right and midway between front and back.
8 Expand the Mixer out as much as you can to remind yourself of how the pan controls
are set for the WALLA-L and WALLA-R tracks.
9 Drag the blue handle for the PIANO track to the bottom of the pan controls so that it
will now play out of the rear speakers. For anyone listening in 5.1, it will now sound as
though the piano player is behind them.
10 Double-click A10 SFX track’s pan controls. 515

11 Adjust the Front/Back controls to C (for center).

Adding More Mains

12 In the Boom settings, click On to send the audio to the subwoofer channel and set the
level to -20.

13 Repeat the previous three steps for the A11 SFX and A12 MUSIC tracks.
516 14 Play the timeline once more to see how the channels in the 5.1 main are now
being used.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

15 Return the Control Room pop-up menu to Main 1 for the full stereo mix.

This exercise demonstrates just how comprehensive and flexible working with audio is
within DaVinci Resolve 17 and how easy it is to repurpose a mix for different speaker
configurations.

Recording Automation in Fairlight

You have created a very sophisticated mix for this scene just using the audio controls
available to you in the edit page. However, there are a few occasions when you need
access to additional controls that the edit page can’t provide. In these cases, it’s easier to
move to the Fairlight page. In the last two exercises in this lesson, you will learn how to use
the Fairlight page to record level changes in real time and to monitor loudness levels.
Thankfully, in order to make use of these features you don’t need to do anything with the 517
timeline other than open it in the Fairlight page. Any changes you then make in the Fairlight
page are instantly reflected in the edit page and vice versa. Such is the advantage of

Recording Automation in Fairlight

DaVinci Resolve!
1 Click the Fairlight page button or press Shift-7.

The Fairlight page opens.

TIP  If you have previously used the Fairlight page, you can reset the interface
to its default layout by choosing Workspace > Reset UI Layout. This will also
reset the layout for every other page, so consider saving specific layouts.
Layouts presets save the layouts of all the pages together, rather than
separately, so consider updating a previously saved layout if saving changes
to a specific page’s layout.

2 Expand the Mixer to reveal all the busses in this timeline.

518 3 Press Shift-Z to automatically resize the timeline to the current timeline window.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

NOTE  Many familiar edit page functions work in the same way in the Fairlight
page, so you should be relatively familiar with how the Fairlight page operates.

To adjust the levels of the Music submix, you will enable the timeline’s
automation settings.
4 Click the Automation button next to the transport controls.

The automation toolbar opens above the transport controls, and a new set of tracks
appear in the timeline for each of the busses.

TIP  Use Shift-scroll to adjust the height of the timeline tracks in a similar
manner to how you can adjust track heights in the edit page.
 519

Recording Automation in Fairlight

Automation allows you to choose which controls you want to be able to adjust over
time. Then, when you adjust those enabled controls during playback, those
adjustments are recorded and applied to the controls in real time.
5 In the automation toolbar, change the Touch option to Latch.

Latch begins recording automation data when you start moving a control that is
enabled in the automation toolbar and continues to record at the level where you
leave the control.
6 In the Enables section, click the Fader button to activate it.

This tells Fairlight that you only want to enable automation for the faders. You can
enable more than one set of controls simultaneously, such as pan, EQ and plug-ins,
including any Fairlight FX filters from the Effects Library.
7 Position your timeline playhead just before the start of the music on A12.
520 8 Play the timeline, and as Agent Jenkins delivers his final line, “We need you to tell us
everything you know…,” drag the Mixer fader for the MUSIC submix up by about +5 dB.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

When you first select the fader, it turns red to indicate you are recording the changes.
9 When the scene ends, stop playback.
The fader control now turns green to indicate that automation has been recorded.

10 Return the playhead to the second marker and play to review the changes.
As Agent Jenkins delivers his shocking news, notice how the fader for the music
submix starts moving of its own accord!

NOTE  If necessary, you can re-record any automation by playing the

timeline again and simply making further adjustments to the enabled controls.
Alternatively, you can change from Write to Trim mode to record relative
changes to previously recorded automation data.
Viewing and Adjusting Automation 521

You can see the recorded automation curves for any track or bus directly in the timeline.

Recording Automation in Fairlight

You can also use this curve to adjust the automation manually if necessary.
1 In the Fairlight timeline, use the vertical zoom slider or Shift-scroll to increase the
height of the timeline tracks.
2 Scroll to the bottom of the timeline where you will find the bus tracks labelled M1, M2,
M3, or S1, S2, S3 for the appropriate mains and submixes.
3 For the MUSIC submix track (S3), click the automation pop-up menu and choose
Fader Level.

The fader automation curve is displayed in the S3 track.

You can adjust this curve using either the Pencil or Select Range tools.
4 Select the Pencil tool from the timeline toolbar.

When either of the automation editing tools are selected, the currently active
automation curve displays the active control points.

5 Using the pencil, simply redraw the automation curve by clicking and dragging
a new path.
522 6 Alternatively, selecting the Select Range tool will allow you to select either a single
control point by clicking on it, or a range of control points by dragging a selection
area across the automation curve. The selected control points can now be adjusted
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

together or removed completely by pressing Delete (Backspace).

NOTE  If you hide the automation toolbar, any recorded automation is

disabled. To re-enable the automation, just open the automation toolbar
again. To prevent accidentally recording automation, change the Touch
pop-up menu to Off.

Measuring Loudness
Another feature many editors will need to be aware of in the Fairlight page is the ability to
be able to analyze the “integrated loudness” of the overall mix. This is an important part of
being able to make sure you are able to deliver a final file to the exact audio specifications
required by many broadcasters and online streaming providers.
In the past, broadcast standards were based on the highest peak level in a soundtrack.
As long as audio content did not exceed that level, it would pass quality control. That led to
commercials that applied heavy compression to narrow their dynamic range and bring all
voiceovers to the maximum allowable (but somewhat overbearing) level.
To level the acoustic playing field, loudness standards now apply to all broadcast programs
(television and radio) regardless of their length or type, whether a 20-second commercial or
4-hour film. In North America and parts of Asia, an integrated target of -24 LUFS (Loudness
Units Full Scale) is the norm for broadcast content, whereas in the UK and Europe the target
is -23 LUFS. (Theatrical films, trailers, and streaming providers such as Netflix and YouTube
will all have different standards.)
In the following exercise, you’ll monitor the integrated loudness of the mixed scene to
ensure that it comes within +/- 0.5 of the target -23 LUFS.
 523
Loudness Meters
The Fairlight page Loudness meters include both a graphical and numeric display that displays

Measuring Loudness
a variety of useful loudness measurements, with the most important being the Integrated level.

M measures momentary loudness unit average.

Maximum LU measures maximum loudness unit value during playback.

Short measures the average LU level over a

30-second window following the playhead.

Short Max displays the maximum level over the

same 30-second window.

Range measures the dynamic range of the loudness of

your mix. This analysis is required by most broadcast
specifications.
Integrated measures the LUFS value of the the
range you’ve played, accumulating as you continue
playback. This analysis is required by most broadcast
specifications.

• M displays the momentary loudness unit at the playhead location.

• The loudness units meter displays the sum of all channels for the duration of playback.
The numeric value at the top is the max LU value over that range.

• Short displays loudness over a 30-second range.

• Short Max displays the played range’s maximum true peak level.

• Range displays the dynamic range of loudness in the entire program.

• Integrated displays the average loudness for the entire played range. This is the value
that targets either -23 LUFS or -24 LUFS as required by broadcasters.
524 1 Click the Loudness meters options menu.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

A list of specific delivery options appears for a variety of international industry-

standard loudness monitoring standards, including ATSC A/85 (for US broadcast), EBU
R128 (for UK and European broadcast), OP-59 (New Zealand and Australian broadcast),
TR-B32 (for Japanese broadcast), and a specific option for Netflix.
2 Select EBU R128 to set the loudness meter to monitor for broadcast delivery in Europe.
3 Click the Loudness meters options menu again and choose Absolute Scale.

With Absolute Scale selected, the Loudness meters update to reflect the chosen
standard. In this case, because you have selected EBU R128, the meters now display
the required level of -23 LUFS.
Starting the Analysis 525

Now that you have your Loudness meters set to the correct standard, it’s time to see how

Measuring Loudness
well your levels meet that standard. For Fairlight to analyze the loudness of the mixed
scene, you will need to play the whole timeline back in real time.
1 Ensure that you will be analyzing the correct main. Select Main 1 from the control room
pop-up menu above the Mixer.

2 Return the playhead to the start of the timeline.

3 In the Loudness meters, click Reset, and then click Start.

4 Play the timeline from the beginning to the end. Watch the integrated loudness display
during playback to see how close to -23 LUFS your audio mix measures. When the
scene has completely finished, stop playback.
How did you do? How close were your Integrated levels to -23 LUFS? Don’t worry if
they’re not 100% spot on during this first attempt, although you will get better at
judging the correct levels with experience. Many broadcasters will also accept an
integrated level of +/- 0.5LUFS from the standard’s target level, so if your integrated
level is anywhere between -23.5 LUFS and -22.5 LUFS, you should be OK. If you’re
outside that, however, you’ll need to make a simple correction.
Although they analyze and measure audio differently, loudness units (LU) and decibels
(dB) have a 1-to-1 relationship, which makes it easy to adjust faders when targeting the
integrated loudness level. For instance, if the integrated loudness display shows -21
LUFS after you play through your program, you can use the master fader to lower the
decibels by -2 dB and reach the targeted -23 LUFS in the Integrated display.
526 5 In the Mixer, raise or lower the Main 1 fader by the amount needed. In the example
below, the integrated loudness level is -26.9 LUFS, so you would adjust the Main 1
fader by about +3.9 dB.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

6 Adjust the main fader as required and return your timeline playhead to the start of
the scene.

7 In the Loudness meters, click Reset and then Start.

8 Play the scene again and see how the adjustment results in a change to the integrated
loudness level.
 527
Extra Credit
Now that you’re able to accurately measure your mix for loudness, try measuring the 5.1 main

Lesson Review
for delivery to Netflix.

• In the Control Room pop-up menu, make sure you are monitoring the 5.1 Main.

• Make sure you select the NETFLIX delivery standard in the Loudness meters options
menu. Note that Netflix has an integrated target level of -27 LUFS (+/-2 LU).

• Remember to reset and start the Loudness meter before starting playback.

• Remember to play the whole scene from start to finish to get the most accurate
loudness values!

Congratulations! You just completed some high-end professional audio postproduction

from the comfort of your own computer workstation. Hopefully, this lesson has opened your
eyes (and ears) to the wonderful, yet often underappreciated, world of audio post, as well
as the sophisticated audio tools and configurations available as standard in
DaVinci Resolve17.

Lesson Review
1 True or False? Normalizing audio levels is a quick way of ensuring that all your audio
is at the correct level.
2 True or False? You can change the speed of an audio clip in the edit page.
3 True or False? You can only mute or solo a track from the track header controls in
the timeline.
4 Which window allows you to add and remove different submixes?
a) Bus Assign
b) Bus Format
c) Bus Routing
5 True or False? Fairlight FX must be applied in the Fairlight page.
528
Answers
1 False. Normalizing audio will adjust the level of a clip, so the peak is at the level specified.
Lesson 9  Editing and Mixing Audio

2 True. To adjust the speed of any audio clip, right-click the clip and choose Change
Clip Speed.
3 False. You can also use the same controls in the Mixer.
4 b) The Bus Format window allows you to add, change, and remove different busses,
including submixes.
5 False. Fairlight FX are available in the Effects Library in the cut, edit, and Fairlight pages.
Lesson 10

Delivering Projects

When you’re ready to export a project— Time

whether at the end of a workflow, at an This lesson takes approximately
60 minutes to complete.
intermediate point, or when generating
dailies—the render settings and final output Goals
are configured in the deliver page of Preparing the Projects 530
DaVinci Resolve.
Quick Export 533
The aim of this lesson is to shed some light Reformatting for Different
on how to add, format, and include subtitles Aspect Ratios 539
and audio submixes for your final output. Smart Reframe (Studio Only) 549
Using the Deliver Page 552
Exporting AAF for Pro Tools 555
Adding Subtitles 557
Exporting with Subtitles 572
Exporting Audio Tracks 573
Changing and Rendering Jobs
from Multiple Projects 576
Media Managing Timelines 581
Lesson Review 585
530
Preparing the Projects
For this lesson, you will use three different projects you have previously worked on to
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

explore the various options DaVinci Resolve 17 provides for delivering projects in a variety
of formats. You will begin by importing all three projects into a separate folder in the
Project Manager.
1 Launch DaVinci Resolve 17.

2 In the Project Manager, click New Folder.

3 In the Create New Folder window, type R17 Editing Lesson 10 and click Create.
 A new folder is created in the Project Manager. 531

Preparing the Projects

4 Double-click the R17 Editing Lesson 10 folder to open it.

TIP  You can use the folder path in the top right to navigate back out of
this folder.

5 Open a new Finder window (macOS) or Explorer window (Windows) and navigate to
R17 Editing/Lessons/Lesson 10 Delivery.
This folder contains several files that you will use throughout this lesson.
532 6 Select the three DaVinci Resolve Project files (R17 EDITING LESSON 10 Pt1 –
CITIZEN CHAIN.drp, R17 EDITING LESSON 10 Pt2 - AGE_OF_AIRPLANES.drp
and R17 EDITING LESSON 10 Pt3 - SYNC SCENE.drp) and drag them directly into
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

the Project Manager window.

Each of the projects is imported into the Project Manager. You are now ready to continue
with the lesson.
Quick Export 533

The first delivery option you will explore is the Quick Export function. This is a useful

Quick Export
option that can be directly accessed in the cut, edit, color and Fairlight pages and can be
used to quickly deliver a file for delivery without having to worry about checking complex
settings. What’s more, you can also use the feature to upload directly to a variety of video
streaming services.
1 Double-click the R17 EDITING LESSON 10 Pt1 – CITIZEN CHAIN project to open it and
relink the media files.
This is a version of the Citizen Chain footage that you edited in the cut page.
2 If necessary, click the Cut Page button or press Shift-3.

3 In the top-right corner of the cut page, click the Quick Export button.

NOTE  The Quick Export window can also be accessed in the cut page, as
well as in the edit, color, and Fairlight pages, by choosing File > Quick Export.
534 The Quick Export window opens with a set of default options.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

NOTE  On Windows computers, there is no option for exporting ProRes

QuickTime files.

4 If necessary, select the H.264 preset.

Information about the file that will be created is listed below the selected preset,
including the resolution, duration, frame rate, and video and audio codecs.

TIP  You can set In and Out points in the timeline if you don’t need to export
the whole timeline.

In this case, though, your client is asking for a quick export at 720p HD resolution.
Unfortunately, you can’t override the settings for the Quick Export in the current window.
5 Click Cancel to cancel the export.
6 Choose Timeline > Find Current Timeline in Media Pool.
 The current timeline is revealed in the media pool. 535

Quick Export
7 Right-click the Citizen Chain Final timeline and choose Timeline Settings.

The timeline’s current settings are revealed. Note that it was created using the
project’s settings.
536 8 Deselect Use Project Settings to override the timeline’s settings and click the
Output tab.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

9 Deselect the Use Timeline Settings for Output Scaling option and change the timeline
Resolution pop-up menu to 1280 x 720 HD 720P and click OK.
10 Choose File > Quick Export to reopen the Quick Export window to see the change to 537
the output resolution. Click Export.

Quick Export
11 In the Choose Export Path, navigate to the R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 10/Output
folder. Create a new folder called Quick Export and click Save.

The Quick Export process immediately starts writing a file to the location you have just
selected on your computer.
538
Uploading Directly to Social Media
You can also use the Quick Export window
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

to upload the exported file directly to social

media platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo,
and Twitter. To do this, you must sign in to
your social media account using
DaVinci Resolve’s preferences. Just click
Manage Account if you are not currently
signed in to open the Internet Accounts
preferences window.

Here you can sign in directly to whichever social media accounts you need. DaVinci Resolve
Studio also supports uploading to the online video review and collaboration service Frame.io.

Once you have signed into your accounts

and given permission for DaVinci Resolve to
access the account, click Save.

In the Quick Export window, you can now

choose to have DaVinci Resolve
automatically upload the exported file,
including setting privacy settings, titles, and
descriptions, which people browsing the site
can use to search for your video.
Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios 539

While most modern video cameras still shoot traditional 16:9 aspect video footage, that

Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios

doesn’t necessarily mean you are always required to deliver 16:9 footage. In fact, with many
videos being watched on mobile devices, many social media content creators prefer an
alternative aspect ratio such as 1:1 (square formats such as those favored by Instagram) or
9:16 (vertical formats that are common on TikTok).
DaVinci Resolve 17 allows you to customize your timeline settings for several different
aspect ratios.
In the next exercise, you will learn how easy it is to repurpose a timeline to fit a square
aspect ratio.

NOTE  The cut page viewer has several useful safe areas for different aspect
ratios that you can use as a guide to see how well each shot will be framed for any
standard aspect ratio before you change the timeline resolution.
540 1 In the media pool, right-click the Citizen Chain Final timeline and choose
Duplicate Timeline.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

2 Rename the duplicated timeline to Citizen Chain Final SQUARE and double-click to
open it in the timeline.

TIP  You can use List view in the media pool to easily see longer clip names,
or you can use the Timeline pop-up menu above the viewer to access any
currently enabled timeline in your project.

3 Click the Timeline Resolution pop-up menu in the top right of the viewer to see a short
list of common timeline presets.

4 Choose Square 1080 x 1080.

 The current timeline updates to the new aspect ratio. However, it has simply 541
letterboxed the 16:9 footage into the square aspect ratio. The client does not like this
“empty space” above and below the video and wants the video to completely fill the

Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios

square aspect ratio.

5 Click the Timeline Resolution pop-up menu again and choose Custom
Timeline Settings.

The Timeline Settings window reopens with the timeline resolution settings reflecting
the previous change you made.
542 6 Change the Mismatched Resolution pop-up menu to “Scale full frame with crop”
and click OK.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

Now all the clips in this timeline correctly fill the 1:1 aspect ratio. However, unless the
shots were specifically filmed with repurposing to a square aspect ratio in mind, it’s
likely that not all of them will be framed correctly.
Reframing Shots 543

Unless the director of photography had a clear understanding that all or part of the final

Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios

film would need to be displayed in a 1:1 aspect ratio, it’s very likely that you will just need
to adjust the framing of some of these shots. Thankfully, as DaVinci Resolve is resolution
independent, you always have access to the full picture information, even though it appears
currently cropped.
1 In the square timeline, locate the shot of Sasha locking the bike, with the sticker
declaring “Rosebud was a bike.”

While many of the interview clips seem not to have suffered much during the change
in aspect ratio, this shot is losing something of its impact, as the sticker is now slightly
off-center.
2 Click the Tools button to reveal the transform controls.
544 The Tools controls in the cut page provide direct access to many parameters from the
Inspector. Having them displayed below the viewer in a compact form is useful, though, if
you’re working on a laptop or other system that doesn’t have a large screen.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

3 Use the horizontal position control to move the clip slightly to the left, leaving the sticker
centered in the shot. Click the Tools button again to close the tools when you’re finished
adjusting the framing of the clip.
 545
NOTE  You can also use the Transform controls in the Video Inspector if
you prefer.

Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios

As you can see, it’s easy to repurpose content shot in one aspect ratio for another.
Sometimes, though, things get slightly trickier.
4 Move your playhead to the start of the fourth clip in the timeline and play to
review the shot.
This is a tilt up from Sasha and his dog arriving at the store to the store’s name.
Unfortunately, as the DoP didn’t fully take into account the possible need to repurpose
this shot for social media, it’s now up to you to do the best you can.

5 Place the playhead about halfway through the shot as the tilt begins.

6 Open the Inspector.

You can access all the usual Inspector controls directly in the cut page.
546 7 Click the Keyframe button to add a keyframe to the position parameters.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

8 Play the clip forward until just before the tilt up finishes and stop playback.
9 Adjust the Position X parameter field until the left side of the sign is in shot 547
(about 165.0).

Reformatting for Different Aspect Ratios

10 Play forward a second or so further until the camera move finishes.
11 Click the Keyframe button to add a third keyframe manually without adjusting the
position values.
548 12 Play forward another second or so until Sasha is saying “Welles.” Stop playback and
adjust the Position X value field until the right side of the sign is in shot (about -160.0).
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

13 Return to the start of the shot and play back to review.

14 To smooth the movement between the keyframes, press [ (left bracket) or ] (right
bracket) to move the playhead to the third keyframe, and then right-click the keyframe
control for the position parameters and choose Ease In and Out.

15 Press ] (right bracket) to move to the fourth and final keyframe. Right-click the keyframe
control and choose Ease In.

16 Review the changes to the animation.

 549
TIP  If you want more detailed control over the keyframes, just click the Edit Page
button, where you can open the keyframe track and animation curves as you did

Smart Reframe (Studio Only)

in Lesson 7.

Smart Reframe (Studio Only)

NOTE  The following exercise uses the Smart Reframe feature, which is only
available in DaVinci Resolve Studio. If you are using the free version of DaVinci
Resolve, you will not have the Smart Reframe option and will need to complete
these steps manually.

While the ability to manually add keyframes and adjust the framing of a clip is no doubt
useful, if you must do this for a large number of shots it can quickly slow down the process
of preparing the video for export. If you have several shots to reframe in this manner, using
the Smart Reframe feature in DaVinci Resolve 17 can be a huge timesaver.
1 In the Citizen Chain Final SQUARE timeline, move the playhead to the start of the
second set of clips on track 2 (at around 01:00:46:00).
550 2 Play the first shot.
This shot remains empty for a long time, and then suddenly Sasha comes cycling past!
This is because the shot itself is panning to follow Sasha as he rides into shot on the
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

left side of the frame and out of shot on the right side of the frame. While you could
simply keyframe this shot as you did with the previous example, you can see how
Smart Reframe handles the task instead.
3 Select the clip in the timeline.
4 In the Inspector, open the Smart Reframe controls and click Reframe.
 After a short analysis, the shot updates to show Sasha framed in the viewer. 551

Smart Reframe (Studio Only)

5 Press / (slash) to play around the current frame.
Wow! The shot has been automatically keyframed, so Sasha remains in the shot and
the audience isn’t sitting and looking at an empty frame for a few seconds wondering
what they’re supposed to be watching!

NOTE  Smart Reframe uses the DaVinci Resolve Neural Engine to analyze the
clip and determine the best way to reframe for any given shot. If the Neural
Engine is unable to determine what it should be following (such as a two-shot
of people talking), then you can change the Object of Interest pop-up menu to
Reference Point, which will enable a simple onscreen control. Place the box
over the object you wish to remain the focus of the analysis and click to
Reframe button to let the Neural Engine do the rest.

TIP  You can select multiple timeline clips and use the Smart Reframe’s Auto
feature on all of them together. Each clip will be analyzed separately for the
best results.
552
Using the Deliver Page
Instead of using the Quick Export feature to output this video, you will use the options in
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

the deliver page.

1 Click the Deliver Page button.

The square timeline opens in the deliver page, where you can assign much more
specific settings to the file you want to output.

NOTE  The Render Settings window features a list of common delivery

presets. Click the downward triangles for each preset for additional options,
such as different resolutions.

2 To export your square video for Instagram or other social media sites that utilize square
videos, select the H.264 Master preset.
3 In the Filename field, type Citizen Chain Final Square. 553

Using the Deliver Page

4 For the Location, click the Browse button, and in the File Destination window that
appears, navigate to R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 10/Output Folder.
5 Create a new folder in this location called Instagram and click Save.

6 In the Video tab, check that the resolution is set to 1080 x 1080 and the frame rate is 24.
554 7 Click the Audio tab and verify that the codec is AAC, the data rate is 320 Kb/s and the
output track is Main 1 (which is the only main output for this timeline).
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

8 Click Add to Render Queue at the bottom of the Render Settings panel.

The job is added to the Render Queue as Job 1. From here you can choose to render out
the job, but there are more jobs to add to the queue before you start the rendering.

Understanding Data Levels

In the Advanced Settings, Data Levels specifies the data range of an image based on its
source. The default Auto setting renders media at a data level appropriate for the selected
codec. Video refers to YCbCr formats that constrain to pixel data values between 64–940 on a
10-bit system in formats using a Rec.709 video standard. Full expands the range to the film
standard of 4–1024 values, which is utilized in digital film formats such as DPX. In general, the
best choice is to leave this setting unchanged and let DaVinci Resolve choose the data level
automatically. However, if you find that your final video looks substantially darker or lighter than
it appears on your calibrated monitor, it’s possible that the data levels are being incorrectly
distributed. In that rare case, you may want to manually set the Data Levels correctly for your
intended distribution.
Exporting AAF for Pro Tools 555

Despite Fairlight having all the tools necessary to mix and master your audio, another task

Exporting AAF for Pro Tools

many editors are required to fulfill is to send the audio to be mixed in a Pro Tools system. In
this exercise, you will look at using the Pro Tools export preset for doing just this.
1 Press Shift-1 to open the Project Manager.
2 Double-click the R17 EDITING LESSON 10 Pt2 – AGE OF AIRPLANES project. If
prompted, save the current Citizen Chain project to prevent the loss of your changes.
3 Switch to the edit page and use the Relink Media button to relink the files.

This project is a version of the Age of Airplanes promo you edited all the way back in
Lesson 1! You may remember that you’d didn’t spend too much time finessing the audio
for this project. So now you will export it in a format to be sent to a Pro Tools system
where the audio will be mixed for you.
4 With the media back online, click the deliver page again, and from the Render Settings
panel, select the Pro Tools preset.

NOTE  Resolve uses the AAF (Advanced Authoring Format) to output

sequence information for Pro Tools systems.

5 Click Browse and navigate to the R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 10/Output folder. Create
a new folder here called Pro Tools AAF and click Open.
556 6 In the Audio tab, ensure that the codec is set to Linear PCM. This will create a series of
uncompressed .wav files for the audio clips in your timeline as preferred by many Pro
Tools users.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

You also must provide a video reference file for the Pro Tools user that they can use to
verify the timecode sync for the timeline they will need to import.
7 Click the Video tab. Change the Format to QuickTime, and then ensure that the codec
is H.264, and the resolution is 1280 x 720 HD 720P.

It would also be useful to have Burned-in Timecode (or BiTC) on the video reference clip.
8 Choose Workspace > Data Burn-In.
9 In the Data Burn-In window, select Record Timecode to display the timeline’s 557
timecode. Increase the size to about 85 and the background opacity to 80, and then
close the Data Burn-In window.

Adding Subtitles
Finally, you need to add some handles to the audio media you are delivering.
10 Open the Advanced Settings from the Video tab and add 12 frame handles.

11 Click Add to Render Queue to add this job to the render queue window.
Excellent. That’s two jobs queued and ready to go. Just one more job to add to the list, and
then you can let Resolve render all the jobs together.

Adding Subtitles
DaVinci Resolve allows you to add subtitles to your timelines in several ways. You can
manually create all your subtitles for your project, or you can import a supported subtitle file.
1 Press Shift-1 to open the Project Manager and double-click the R17 EDITING
LESSON 10 Pt3 – SYNC SCENE project, saving the changes to the current open
project if prompted.
558 2 Press Shift-4 to jump to the edit page and relink the media for this project.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

This project contains a finished version of the scene between the doctor and the
FBI agents. Take a moment to reacquaint yourself with the scene and how the audio
is mixed. All that’s left for you to do is add subtitles before outputting the final files
for delivery.
3 Open the Effects Library.
4 In the Effects Library, in the Titles group, locate the Subtitles section.
5 Drag the Subtitle generator to the timeline in the space above the video tracks and 559
snap it to the beginning of the timeline.

Adding Subtitles
A new track appears in the timeline labeled ST1 Subtitle 1, and the subtitle text appears
in the timeline viewer.
560
TIP  You can show and hide existing subtitle tracks in the Timeline View
Options menu.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

6 In the timeline, select the subtitle and open the Inspector.

The Inspector includes the controls for the individual subtitle captions and for the
entire subtitle track.

7 In the Caption field, highlight the word “Subtitle,” and type APPLAUSE.

NOTE  Settings for the maximum number of characters per line and the minimum
duration for each of your captions is set in the Subtitles panel of the Project
Settings window.
8 Place the timeline playhead at the start of the second clip in the timeline, 561
02_Dr_Sarah_Close Up.mov, and in the Inspector, click the Add New button.

Adding Subtitles
A new subtitle is overwritten into the timeline at the current playhead position.

9 Select the new Subtitle generator, and in the Inspector, type the dialogue from the
doctor: Oh, thank you. I’m so glad you really liked it.

10 Trim the end of the second Subtitle generator to the end of the second clip on V1,
02_Dr_Sarah_Close Up.mov.

You can edit and trim Subtitle generators just like any other clip on your timeline.
562
Importing Subtitle Files
You can continue working through this timeline, adding subtitles for the lines of dialogue.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

However, it’s usually much more efficient and accurate to have someone transcribe the
dialogue for you and create a .srt file that you can import directly into Resolve.
1 In the media pool, press Shift-Command-N (macOS) or Shift-Ctrl-N (Windows) to create
a new bin. Change the name to Subtitles.
2 With the Subtitle bin selected, choose File > Import > Subtitle.

3 Navigate to R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 10 Delivery/Subtitles and select the file

Lesson 10 Subtitles US.srt. Click Open.
The .srt file is added to the selected bin as a subtitle clip.
4 Select the subtitle file Lesson 10 Subtitles US and drag it into the timeline, so it starts 563
at the location of the red timeline marker.

Adding Subtitles
All the subtitles in the .srt file are added to the Subtitle 1 track in the timeline.

Adjusting Subtitles
Subtitles clips behave just like any clip in the Resolve timeline, so you can easily adjust
their timings, as necessary.
1 Click in the timeline viewer’s Timecode field and type 1800 to navigate to the point
before the doctor says, “That wouldn’t be possible.” Play the timeline from this point
to review the dialogue and subtitles.

The subtitles appear onscreen too late for the doctor’s line of dialogue. You’ll need to
adjust the subtitle timing to sync it correctly.
2 Press T to enter Trim Edit mode.
3 In the timeline, select the lower portion of the subtitle, “That wouldn’t be possible,” so
the mouse pointer changes to a slide icon.
564 4 Slide the subtitle back to the left by about 17 frames, or until it snaps to the beginning
of the doctor’s audio clip on A1.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

5 When you have finished sliding the subtitle into the correct position, press / (slash) to
review the change.
6 Press A to return to Selection mode.
You can also trim and roll trim each of the subtitles using the Selection mode, as well as cut
each subtitle into shorter clips using the Blade Edit mode and keyboard shortcuts. Auto
track selector controls for the subtitle tracks work the same as they do across all the other
tracks in the timeline, so be careful if you’re rippling trimming subtitles.

Maintaining Subtitle Sync

If you want to further ensure that your subtitles remain synced to the appropriate audio
clips, you can link the clips. By doing so, if you inadvertently change the timeline and knock
the subtitles out of sync, red clip sync indicators will show how far out of sync they are.
1 In the timeline, select the second subtitle clip with the text, “Oh thank you, I’m so glad
you really liked it.”
It makes sense to link this subtitle with the audio clip on A1.
2 Select the second subtitle clip, and in A1, Command-click (macOS) or Ctrl-click
(Windows) the orange audio clip.
3 With both clips selected, right-click either of them, and at the bottom of the shortcut 565
menu, choose Link Clips, or press Option-Command-L (macOS) or Alt-Ctrl-L (Windows)
to link these clips.

Adding Subtitles
You can also link multiple subtitles to multiple video and audio clips.
4 In the timeline, select the next three subtitle clips along with the two yellow audio
clips on A2.

5 Press Option-Command-L (macOS) or Alt-Ctrl-L (Windows) to link these clips.

These clips are now linked and will display the red out-of-sync indicators if they lose sync.
566
Styling Subtitles
Just as with any other title generator in Resolve, subtitle generators have many parameters
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

that you can change to adjust the style and position of your subtitles and closed captions.
One common style applied to subtitles is a semi-transparent box behind the text to help it
stand out against video with a similar brightness.
1 Move your playhead over the last subtitle in your timeline.

The end of the line appears a little obscured against this final shot and isn’t
easy to read.
2 In the timeline, select the subtitle, and in the Inspector, click the Track Style tab.

3 Scroll down to the Background options and enable the Background settings.
4 Adjust the Width and Height settings so that the box extends behind the white text and 567
helps it stand out from the similarly light video background.

Adding Subtitles
Because you have added this track style, all the subtitles in this track are updated with
the change. This behavior is particularly useful when you need to modify style settings
for all the subtitles in a track.
568 You can, however, override those track-wide settings for any individual subtitle when
you need to adjust the color, font, or position of one or more subtitles, but not all.
5 In the timeline, move the playhead to the first subtitle.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

This subtitle indicates a sound effect rather than detailing spoken dialogue. As such,
the director would like you to adjust it to appear a little more obvious.
6 In the timeline, select the subtitle, and in the Inspector, select the Captions tab. 569
Deselect Use Track Style.

Adding Subtitles
A set of additional controls appear for this caption.
7 Change the “Font face” to Italic to distinguish this caption from the other captions.
The subtitle updates to reflect the change in style.
570 You can add multiple subtitle tracks, which is particularly useful when you need to
supply subtitles in more than one language.
8 In the edit page, right-click any one of the timeline track headers and choose Add
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

Subtitle Track.

An additional subtitle track is added to the timeline.

9 In the media pool’s Subtitles bin, right-click, and choose Import Subtitle.
10 Navigate to R17 Editing/Lessons/Lesson 10 Delivery/Subtitles and select the 571
Lesson 10 Subtitles FR.webvtt file. Click Open.
11 Edit this new subtitle file into the empty subtitle track you just created, starting at the

Adding Subtitles
beginning of the timeline.

This subtitle file includes French subtitles. You can rename subtitle tracks to reflect the
language used, making it easier to identify the different tracks.

NOTE  This subtitle has none of the styling included with the previous subtitle
you worked with; however, because the WebVTT format supports basic text
formatting, the first subtitle is italicized.

12 Click the Subtitle 1 track name, and type en_US to identify this subtitle as English for
a US audience.
13 Click the Subtitle 2 track name, and type fr_FR to identify this subtitle as French for
a French audience.

TIP  To choose the subtitle track visible in the timeline viewer, in the head of
the track you wish to view, click the eye icon. You can display only one subtitle
track at a time.

More Info Regarding Subtitles

Depending on your workflow and delivery specifications, you may be required to use
standardized two- or three-letter abbreviations for each language as dictated by the
International Organization for Standardization.

See the website at www.loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/code_list.php for more details.

572
Exporting with Subtitles
When it comes to delivering subtitles with your finished program, several options are open
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

to you. Depending on your delivery format, you can include subtitles as burned-in graphics,
embedded text in a supported media file, or as a separate file.
In this next exercise, you will output a file suitable for broadcast delivery, together with the
necessary separate subtitle files.
1 On the deliver page, in the Render Settings window, choose the Custom preset, and
set the render to single clip to export a single movie file.
2 In the Filename field, type SYNC SCENE MASTER.
3 Click the Location Browse button and navigate to the R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 10
Delivery/Output folder. Create a new folder called Sync Scene and click OK.

4 Back in the Render Settings panel, set the Format pop-up menu to MXF OP1A, the
Codec to DNxHD, and the Type to 720p 100/85/55/45 8-bit.

5 Scroll to the bottom of the Video tab, expand the option for Subtitle Settings, and
choose to Export Subtitle.
6 Set the Format options to “As a separate file.” 573

If you chose the “Burn into video” option, Resolve would burn the currently active
subtitles (with their styles) into the final rendered video file, so the subtitles would be

Exporting Audio Tracks

permanently included as part of the video content. Choosing “As embedded captions”
will output the currently active subtitle track as an embedded metadata layer within
those media formats that support it. Currently, DaVinci Resolve supports CEA608 and
text captions within MXF OP1A and QuickTime containers.
7 In the Export As pop-up menu, choose SRT and select both the “en_US” and “fr_FR”
subtitle tracks to include them in the export.

This takes care of the video and file settings. Next, you will choose which audio tracks
to output.

Exporting Audio Tracks

You will remember from the previous chapter that this scene contains three different mains
busses: a stereo mix, M&E, and a 5.1 mix, together with three submixes for dialogue, effects,
and music. In the Render Settings, you can choose to output different combinations of
audio tracks and busses. Doing so makes it incredibly easy to export a final movie with
stereo, surround, or an M&E mix for international dubbing.
1 In the Render Settings, click the Audio tab.
2 Leave the audio codec set to Linear PCM (this is also referred to as uncompressed,
or lossless, audio) and leave the sample rate and bit depth settings as they are.
574 3 From the output track 1 pop-up menu, ensure that Main 1 (Stereo) is selected.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

4 Click the + (plus) button to the right of the output track 1 pop-up menu to add a second
main bus to the output file.

The second main bus (M&E) is automatically selected, but you can use the pop-up
menu to change this if necessary.
5 Click Add to Render Queue.
If you need to use the same settings for more than one export, consider saving the
render settings as a preset.
6 Click the render settings options menu and choose Save As New Preset.
7 Name your preset MXF DNxHD 720P and click OK. 575

Exporting Audio Tracks

The new preset appears at the top of the render settings panel.

TIP  You can choose to have any saved presets appear in the list of Quick
Export options by clicking the render settings options menu and choosing
Quick Exports > and the preset name.

Delivering AS-11 and Other File Formats

DaVinci Resolve 17 now features the DaVinci Resolve IO Plug-In SDK that enables third-party
developers to create and distribute plug-in packs. These plug-in packs extend the range of
codec and format options that can be rendered directly from DaVinci Resolve Studio.

An example of this is the MainConcept Codec Plug-In for DaVinci Resolve Studio. Once
installed, this plug-in adds additional MainConcept MXF and MP4 format options, including
a specific option to deliver directly to AS-11 DPP, a specific delivery requirement for UK
broadcasters.

More information on this plug-in is available at https://www.mainconcept.com/products/

plugins/blackmagic-design-plugins/bmd.html
576
Changing and Rendering Jobs from
Multiple Projects
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

The Render Queue can show jobs from the current project or from all projects in your
database. If you split longer projects into reels, or you are working on different projects for
the same client, you might need to access all the jobs in the queue instead of waiting for
one batch to render before outputting other projects.
1 In the Render Queue options menu, choose Show All Projects.

Any jobs added to the Render Queue in any project currently in the database are
displayed for you to select and render.

2 In the Render Queue options menu, choose Show Job Details.

 The specific settings for each job are displayed, including resolutions, codec, and 577
frame rate.

Changing and Rendering Jobs from Multiple Projects

Even after you add jobs to the Render Queue, you can update their settings or remove
them from the queue entirely.
3 In the Render Queue, click the pencil icon for Job 1. If prompted, save the
current project.

The Citizen Chain project reopens automatically, and the current render settings for
the selected job become available.
578
TIP  The presence of additional Update Job and Cancel buttons at the bottom
of the Render Settings indicates that a job is currently being edited.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

Now you can make any changes to the job before rendering out the final file.
4 In the Video tab, change the Format to MP4 instead of QuickTime.

5 Click Update Job.

The change updates the original job settings with the new setting as is reflected in the
displayed job details in the Render Queue. In this case, you can see the file extension
change from .mov to .mp4.
 579
TIP  To delete a job, click the X in the upper-right corner of the job in the
Render Queue.

Changing and Rendering Jobs from Multiple Projects

6 Finally, click in an empty area of the render queue panel to deselect Job 1, and then
click the Render All button to create the output files.
580 DaVinci Resolve renders each of the jobs in the render queue. Once it has finished
outputting the files, you can choose to open the Output folder on your system and
verify the files you’ve created.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

7 Right-click any of the completed jobs and choose Reveal in Finder (macOS) or Open
File Location (Windows).
 581
NOTE  While you can often open and view many files to check their integrity (such
as MP4 files, for example), the only true test of the success of creating the file is to

Media Managing Timelines

open it back into Resolve.

Utilizing the correct render settings is vital to delivering an aesthetically correct and
technically functional video project. Understanding these settings has even greater
benefits. It elevates your skill set as an editor and imbues confidence that your projects are
delivered at their optimal quality and adhere to industry standards.

Remote Rendering
DaVinci Resolve Studio allows you to offload rendering to another Resolve workstation.
Remote rendering requires that all workstations have a copy of DaVinci Resolve 17 Studio
installed, a shared Postgres database, and access to all necessary media files using the same
filename path. With one computer acting as a render station, all other Resolve stations can
continue to be used for further editing and grading.

Media Managing Timelines

A final step in the delivery options for your projects is to manage the source media files for
your projects for easy archiving.
1 Press Shift-1 to open the Project Manager and double-click
R17 EDITING LESS 10 Pt3 – SYNC SCENE FINISHED to reopen the Sync
Scene project.

TIP  You can enable Dynamic Project Switching by right-clicking in an empty

area of the Project Manager to allow you to quickly switch between projects
without having to close the current project.

2 Press Shift-4 to jump to the edit page.

582 3 Choose File > Media Management.
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

The Media Management window opens.

NOTE  The Media Management window is only available in the media, cut and
edit pages.

The Media Management window allows you to copy or transcode the media for the
entire project, specific timelines, or clips.
4 Select the Timeline tab.
5 Next to the Destination field, click Browse.
6 Navigate to the R17 Editing Lessons/Lesson 10 Delivery/Output folder and create a new 583
folder called Archive. Click Open.
7 In the Media Management window, select the SYNC SCENE 2 FINISHED timeline.

Media Managing Timelines

8 For Copy, make sure the “Used media and trim keeping 24 frame handles” option
is selected.

This option means the media files being copied will only be the parts of those files
actually used in the selected timeline, plus an additional 24 frames either side of the In
and Out points, just in case a small tweak is ever needed.
584 At the bottom of the Media Management window, the current size indicator displays
the total storage size of all the media currently in this project (including unused clips).
The new size indicator shows the amount of storage the trimmed media will use. In this
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

case, you can see that the copied media will only require about a third of the storage
of the full project.
9 Click Start to begin the media management process.
10 Once complete, open the Archive folder to find the copied media and a .drt file.

This is the folder that you can now archive separately. To restore the edit from this archived
material, simply create a new project and choose File > Import > Timeline and import the .
drt file. The imported timeline will automatically relink to the trimmed media.
Lesson Review 585

1 True or False? You must use the deliver page in order to export a video file from

Lesson Review
your project?
2 Which function uses the DaVinci Resolve Neural Engine to automatically add
keyframes to keep the subject of a clip in frame when reformatting a timeline to a
different aspect ratio?
a) Auto Conform
b) Smart Reframe
c) Smart Conform
3 What format is commonly used when sending audio to be mic’d on a Pro Tools system?
a) AAF
b) XML
c) EDL
4 Which window enables you to add a Burned-in Timecode (BiTC) to your
exported video?
a) Timecode Window
b) Data Burn-In
c) Text+
5 True or False? All subtitles must be imported from a supported .srt file.
586
Answers
1 False. You can use the Quick Export option available in the cut, edit, and
Lesson 10  Delivering Projects

Fairlight pages.
2 b) Smart Reframe.
3 a) AAF (Advanced Authoring Format)
4 b) Data Burn-In
5 False. Subtitles can be manually created inside DaVinci Resolve using the Subtitle title
in the Effects Library.
Index

Index 587
588 Index
Index 589
590 Index