https://github.com/2sem/davinci-resolve-lite-mcp
MCP server to control DaVinci Resolve free (Lite) edition from Claude — runs as a Workspace>Scripts menu server, zero dependencies
https://github.com/2sem/davinci-resolve-lite-mcp
Last synced: 22 days ago
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MCP server to control DaVinci Resolve free (Lite) edition from Claude — runs as a Workspace>Scripts menu server, zero dependencies
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/2sem/davinci-resolve-lite-mcp
- Owner: 2sem
- License: mit
- Created: 2026-05-31T14:47:32.000Z (25 days ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-06-01T07:18:22.000Z (25 days ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-06-01T07:25:13.717Z (25 days ago)
- Language: Python
- Size: 85 KB
- Stars: 0
- Watchers: 0
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- Changelog: CHANGELOG.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
README
# davinci-resolve-lite-mcp
An [MCP](https://modelcontextprotocol.io) server that lets an AI client such as
**Claude Code** control **DaVinci Resolve** — including the **free (Lite)
edition**, which the existing
[davinci-resolve-mcp](https://github.com/samuelgursky/davinci-resolve-mcp)
project cannot drive.
The free edition blocks *external* scripting, but it still runs Python scripts
launched from its own **Workspace > Scripts** menu. This project rides that path:
the MCP server runs **inside** Resolve as a menu script, and exposes Resolve's
Python API over a small local HTTP endpoint that Claude connects to.
```
Claude Code ──HTTP JSON-RPC (MCP)──▶ 127.0.0.1:8765/mcp
│ server runs INSIDE Resolve
│ (Workspace > Scripts > Utility)
▼
command queue → main script thread
▼
global `resolve` object → Resolve API
```
## Why this works on the free edition
* Free Resolve permits scripts run from its **Scripts menu** (only *external*
network scripting is restricted).
* A menu script gets the `resolve` object for free and may run a long-lived
loop — long enough to host a server.
* The sandboxed Lite app ships the `com.apple.security.network.server`
entitlement, so it can open a localhost listening socket.
* **Zero dependencies** — pure Python standard library. Nothing to `pip install`
into Resolve's interpreter.
## Requirements
* macOS with DaVinci Resolve (Lite/free or Studio).
* Claude Code (or any MCP client that speaks the Streamable HTTP transport).
## Install
```bash
git clone
cd davinci-resolve-lite-mcp
./install.sh
```
`install.sh` deploys:
* the two launcher scripts into `Fusion/Scripts/Utility` (a folder Resolve scans
for the Scripts menu; **Utility** shows on every page), and
* the `resolve_mcp` package into `Fusion/Scripts/MCP` — a folder Resolve does
**not** scan, so the helper modules stay out of the menu.
The Lite container path is detected automatically.
> **Sandbox note (important).** DaVinci Resolve Lite is sandboxed and can only
> read its own container, `~/Movies`, and files you pick interactively. A
> symlink that points outside those locations (e.g. into a clone under
> `~/Projects`) **cannot be followed by the sandboxed app**, so the menu script
> would silently never run. For that reason `install.sh` **copies** the files
> into the container on Lite (and symlinks only on the non-sandboxed Studio
> build). **Re-run `./install.sh` after pulling updates.**
>
> Resolve enumerates only the category folders (`Utility / Comp / Tool / Edit /
> Color / Deliver`) for its Scripts menu — that is why the launchers go in
> `Utility` and the package hides in `MCP`.
>
> The same sandboxing applies to file paths you ask the tools to use:
> exports/imports should target `~/Movies` (or other granted locations),
> otherwise Resolve cannot write/read them.
## Run
1. In DaVinci Resolve: **Workspace > Scripts > Utility > davinci_mcp_server**.
2. Open **Workspace > Console** — it prints the endpoint and port:
```
MCP endpoint: http://127.0.0.1:8765/mcp
Add to Claude Code:
claude mcp add --transport http davinci http://127.0.0.1:8765/mcp
```
> The startup guide prints to the Resolve Console (Workspace > Console).
> Because the server runs continuously, its Console output can buffer until
> it stops, so both scripts also mirror every line to a logfile:
>
> ```
> ~/Movies/davinci-resolve-lite-mcp.log
> ```
>
> Watch it live with `./logs.sh`. (Override the directory with
> `DAVINCI_MCP_LOG_DIR`.) `~/Movies` is used because the sandboxed Lite app
> is allowed to write there.
3. Register it with Claude Code:
```bash
claude mcp add --transport http davinci http://127.0.0.1:8765/mcp
```
4. Ask Claude to control Resolve.
### Stopping
Any of these stops the server:
* **From the menu:** Workspace > Scripts > Utility > **stop_davinci_mcp_server**
* **From a terminal:** `./stop.sh`
* **Quit DaVinci Resolve**
The menu stop script and `stop.sh` both POST to the server's `/shutdown`
endpoint, scanning the same port range the server uses on startup.
> The port auto-increments from `8765` if that port is busy. Override the
> default with the `DAVINCI_MCP_PORT` / `DAVINCI_MCP_HOST` environment
> variables before launching Resolve.
## Tools
**77 tools**, all exercised live against DaVinci Resolve Lite, spanning the full
pipeline:
- **Status & navigation** — page switching, project/timeline settings
- **Projects & timelines** — load/create/duplicate, markers, scene cuts, lifecycle
- **Tracks** — add/delete, enable/lock/rename
- **Editing** — place/append/delete clips, titles & generators, transform/crop/zoom
- **Media pool & storage** — import/delete, properties & metadata, tagging, disk browse
- **Color** — node graph LUT/enable, reset grades, stills
- **Render & export** — render queue, formats/codec, frame/timeline/project export & import
See **[docs/TOOLS.md](docs/TOOLS.md)** for the complete per-tool reference.
Every tool call is logged to the Resolve Console and the logfile as a single
line: `[davinci-mcp] -> ok|error|EXCEPTION (Nms)`.
## Project layout
```
src/davinci_mcp_server.py thin launcher (deployed to Scripts/Utility)
src/stop_davinci_mcp_server.py stop launcher
src/resolve_mcp/ the server package (deployed to Scripts/MCP, hidden)
config · logio · connection · bridge · tools · server
tests/test_server.py offline tests (fake Resolve, no app needed)
install.sh · uninstall.sh · stop.sh · logs.sh
docs/TOOLS.md full per-tool reference
fallbacks/ documented gotchas + fixes
```
Run the offline tests with `python3 tests/test_server.py`.
## Known limitations
- Clips are addressed by **name within the current media-pool folder**; if two
clips share a name, only one is reachable. (A future version may add id-based
addressing.)
- Tool arguments are described by JSON Schema but not strictly validated
server-side yet — a malformed call surfaces as a generic JSON-RPC error rather
than a friendly message.
## Security note
The server binds to `127.0.0.1` only, so it is reachable from your machine
only. It exposes control of DaVinci Resolve to any local process that can reach
the port — only run it on a machine you trust.
## License
MIT — see [LICENSE](LICENSE).