Unveiled at NAB 2025 and released on May 28th, DaVinci Resolve 20 introduces a host of powerful new features to the NLE of choice for an ever-growing community of editors. From AI-driven enhancements and improved keyframe editing to more efficient proxy and multicam workflows, plus a redesigned interface optimised for vertical formats, this release is packed with tools designed to streamline and elevate the workflows of post-production professionals. As always, you can download either the free or Studio version of DaVinci Resolve from the Blackmagic Design website.
DaVinci Resolve 20 comes with a comprehensive 4234-page reference manual, detailing every feature and button of this powerful application. To save you time, we’ve summarized all 17 chapters provided in the manual.
Manual Chapters
PART 1 – DaVinci Resolve Interface
PART 2 – Setup and Workflows
PART 3 – Ingest and Organize Media
PART 4 – The Cut Page
PART 5 – Edit
PART 6 – Editing Effects and Transitions
PART 7 – Import and Conform Projects
PART 8 – Fusion Fundamentals
PART 9 – Fusion Page Effects
PART 10 – Color
PART 11 – Color Page Effects
PART 12 – Resolve FX Overview
PART 13 – Fairlight
PART 14 – Deliver
PART 15 – Blackmagic Cloud
PART 16 – Project Libraries, Collaborative, and Remote Workflows
PART 17 – Advanced Workflows
Read full DaVinci Resolve 20 Reference Manual
New Features Guide
In conjunction with the announcement, a New Features Guide for DaVinci Resolve 20 has also been released. Use the following links to navigate through the chapters:
What’s new in DaVinci Resolve 20
Here you can find the full list of new features and improvements in the new version.
Key New Features
Improved keyframing with dedicated curve view and timeline drawer.
Voice over tool with record and monitor options.
Import Blackmagic Cloud Shared folders to media pool.
AI IntelliScript creates timelines with a user provided script.
AI Magic Mask v2 with paint brush.
AI Dialogue Matcher matches clip tone, level and reverberance.
AI Audio Assistant automatically creates a finished mix.
AI IntelliCut removes silences and checkerboards speakers.
Deep image compositing toolset.
Cut Page
Voice over palette with cue, voice tools and teleprompter.
Ripple trimming of audio now available on secondary tracks.
Replay multi views now show previously used camera angles.
Tapping time buttons allows camera buttons to preroll replays.
Auto resync media bins now supports stills and sequences.
Live overwrite now supports edit keys and search dial.
Mouse drag to live overwrite multi source and sync bin.
Trim with safe edit avoids overwriting adjacent clips.
Media pool metadata palette allows quick review of selected clips.
Ability to copy, paste and remove attributes from timeline clips.
Support for a dynamic trimming mode using JKL controls.
Full featured audio mixer.
Mini timeline now includes a context menu.
Edit Page
Voice over tool with record and monitor options.
AI Multicam SmartSwitch for automatic angle switching.
AI VoiceConvert with built-in and user trainable models.
Support for source tape.
Ability to view and edit timelines in the source viewer.
Multicam creation now supports a reference audio track.
Opening compound clip from timeline matches playhead position.
Access timeline settings from timeline tab context menu.
User preference to wrap around 24h timecode.
Cut and Edit Page
Improved keyframing with dedicated curve view and timeline drawer.
Import Blackmagic Cloud Shared folders to media pool.
AI IntelliScript creates timelines with a user provided script.
AI Dialogue Matcher matches clip tone, level and reverberance.
AI Music Editor automatically edits music to desired length.
AI animated subtitles highlights or animates spoken words.
AI SuperScale now includes 3x and 4x enhanced upscaling.
AI Detect Music Beats displays and allows beat snapping.
New optimized UI layouts option for vertical videos.
Custom grid for sorting and organizing of media pool thumbnails.
Text+ paragraph, line wrapping and bounding tools.
MultiText tool with layers and easy transform, clip and wrap controls.
Subtitle tracks now support Fusion templates for styling.
Selectively sync media originals with proxy only cloud sync.
Imported PSDs can now be split into individual layers.
Support for Alert Red viewer background mode.
Transcription engine now offers extended language support.
Smooth Cut now supports AI Speed Warp.
Export audio transcriptions with speaker and timecode.
Export transcriptions with improved phrase and sentence breaks.
Fusion Page
Deep image compositing toolset.
Multi layer pipelining for OpenEXR, PSD and stereoscopic 3D.
Vector warping toolset for image patching and cleanup.
Support for 180 VR.
3D Scene Dome Light.
Support for native Cryptomatte workflows.
View color page grade in media out node.
Faster GPU based pano map and spherical stabilizer tools.
Ability to search tool based on effects category.
User selectable starting frames for compositions.
Color Page
AI Magic Mask v2 with paint brush.
AI Resolve FX Depth Map v2.
Chroma Color Warper grading.
Resolve FX Warper features new spline warp controls.
Open Color IO supported as Resolve FX.
New optimized UI layouts option for vertical video.
Display viewer overlays for remote monitoring.
Stream and monitor H.265 4:2:2 on supported hardware.
Support for Samsung Log.
Support for ACES 2.0.
Ability to generate HDR light level PDF reports.
LUTs and colorspaces can now be modified in multi-user projects.
Node layer controls in the advanced panel.
Lift, gamma, gain Micro Panel sensitivity improvements.
Fairlight Page
AI Audio Assistant automatically creates a finished mix.
AI IntelliCut to remove silences.
AI IntelliCut to checkerboard dialogue by speaker.
AI IntelliCut to generate ADR Cues using transcription speaker info.
Clip EQ now features 6 bands.
EQ and Level Matcher processes match tone and clip levels.
EQ and Gain now also available as Fairlight FX plugins.
Fairlight Chain FX to create and restore frequently chained plugins.
Drag header color to move tracks and busses in the timeline.
Automation now supports per channel mode switching.
Trim automation now remains active through a mix pass.
Improved view presets store multiple parameters.
Codecs
Apple ProRes encode support on Windows and Linux.
Encode MV-HEVC without spatial video metadata.
MV-HEVC encode support on Nvidia systems.
Support for side by side stereo 3D media decode.
Side by side display mode for stereo 3D clips in source viewer.
Editable spatial video metadata properties in inspector.
GPU accelerated H.265 4:2:2 encodes on supported Nvidia systems.
GPU accelerated H.265 4:2:2 decodes on supported Nvidia systems.
Support for growing TS, MTS and M2TS files as media streams.
Support interlaced rendering for frame based formats.
HT JPEG 2000 decode support for EXR.
Quick Export dialog with custom user preset listings and list view.
Ability to assign custom icons to user presets in deliver page.
Support for Sony Burano 2.0.
Support for RED SDK 8.6.
Support for audio normalization for Dropbox presets.
Improved PNG support with HDR and SDR signaling.
General Application
User definable location for media created in Resolve.
DCTL encryption option in LUT browser menu.
DaVinci Remote Monitor supports Intel and AMD GPUs on Windows.
Scripting API support to link full resolution media.
Scripting API support to replace media preserving sub clip extents.
Scripting API support for media pool clip to monitor growing file.
Extras Download Manager for AI models and more.
Updated remote monitor client with bitrate display.
Remote monitor now installs with DaVinci Resolve on macOS.
User preference for automatic cache management.
Ability to enable dual screen windows in ultrawide displays.
Support for OCIO 2.4.2 with ACES 2.0 support.
Preference to import all clips with multi mono audio configuration.
Bluetooth connection status popup dialog.
Ability to filter which fonts are visible in Text+.
Data burn options for synced audio.
Support for Nvidia Blackwell GPUs with CUDA 12.8.
General performance and stability improvements.
- Check out some of our other blogs about Resolve and Premiere Pro:
DaVinci Resolve – Performance and Troubleshooting Guide
Adobe Premiere Pro – Performance and Troubleshooting Guide
Comparing the Auto Reframe Functions in DaVinci Resolve and Premiere Pro
DaVinci Resolve Super Scale – Turn HD Footage Into 4K or Even 8K Footage
DaVinci Resolve – Using an Alternative Microphone Input in with a Blackmagic I/O Device
DaVinci Resolve 19 Reference Manual with Chapter Links
DaVinci Resolve 18 Reference Manual with Chapter Links
