Use Blackmagic Proxy Generator when you want folders monitored automatically as footage arrives. Use Resolve’s in-app generation when you need proxies for selected clips, project-specific settings, or synced audio. Compare both on a small sample before processing an entire shoot.

This guide is for a Mac editor preparing footage for smoother editing, then returning to camera originals for finishing and export. The Resolve instructions follow the September 2026 DaVinci Resolve 21.1 Reference Manual; the Fusion distinctions follow its corresponding manual. Adobe and Apple documentation explain where the same approach changes in other editors. DaVinci Resolve 21.1 Reference Manual, Fusion 21.1 Reference Manual.

Which workflow fits your editing task?

Both Resolve workflows create proxy files, but they organize the work differently. Proxy Generator watches folders independently of your project selections. In-app generation starts with clips selected in Resolve’s Media Pool, using the project’s proxy resolution and format settings. Blackmagic documents both approaches in Chapter 8, “Improving Performance, Proxies, and the Render Cache.” Resolve proxy workflows.

Your immediate task Practical starting point Reason
Prepare incoming footage automatically Blackmagic Proxy Generator Watch folders process newly added source files.
Proxy only the clips you intend to edit Resolve in-app generation You select the clips in the project.
Include separately recorded audio already synced in Resolve Resolve in-app generation Generated proxies embed the synced audio.
Keep proxy output in a project-specific working location Resolve in-app generation Project settings expose a proxy generation destination, subject to preference overrides.
Improve playback after adding demanding effects Investigate render caching Source proxies and effect caches address different processing work.

These recommendations are a decision aid derived from the documented behavior, rather than measured performance results. In particular, do not choose solely on the assumption that only the separate generator can work in the background: Resolve 21.1 documents background proxy generation inside the application too. Resolve background tasks and proxy generation.

How do you use Blackmagic Proxy Generator on Mac?

Choose this route when the folder containing your footage is the natural unit of work—for example, one folder containing a batch of neutral product clips. Blackmagic describes Proxy Generator as a separate application that monitors watch folders and creates proxies from their source video. Its current product documentation lists H.264, H.265, and ProRes choices; use the size and format options available in your installed version rather than assuming every release offers an identical preset list. Blackmagic Proxy Generator overview.

  1. Open Blackmagic Proxy Generator and click Add.
  2. Select the folder containing your source footage, then click Open.
  3. Choose the proxy format available in the application.
  4. Click Start in the Processing pane.
  5. Monitor the watch folder’s status and the current job’s progress. Use Stop when you need to pause processing.

These controls and the watch-folder behavior are documented in Resolve 21.1, Chapter 8, pages 209–212. Proxy Generator instructions.

Plan storage before starting. Proxy Generator creates a Proxy subfolder alongside the source media at its location in the folder hierarchy. If each source clip occupies a separate folder, the result is multiple Proxy folders. The source volume therefore needs space for both originals and generated files. Do not name the watch folder proxy; the manual reserves that name for the generator. Watch-folder storage rules.

Resolve can automatically associate generator proxies with their originals in the expected folder arrangement. After importing the originals, verify that association in the project. If you move proxies elsewhere, use the manual linking procedure below. To collect proxies into another destination, stop processing and use Extract Proxies; the manual describes this as a copy operation. Automatic linking overview, Proxy extraction and linking.

How do you generate proxies inside Resolve?

Use the in-app route when you want deliberate control over which clips receive proxies. It also provides a documented path for footage with separately recorded audio synced in the Media Pool: the generated proxy includes that synced audio embedded in the video file. This is a meaningful difference when evaluating proxies for a project that will continue into Fairlight audio editing. Resolve proxy creation and synced audio.

  1. Open Project Settings, then Master Settings.
  2. In Optimized Media and Render Cache, set Proxy media resolution and Proxy media format.
  3. In Working Folders, inspect Proxy generation location. Also check for an override in the Media Storage preferences.
  4. Select the source clips in the Media Pool.
  5. Open their contextual menu and choose Generate Proxy Media.

The manual describes these settings and commands on pages 207–208. Generate proxy media in Resolve.

The resolution options include keeping the original dimensions or reducing them by a selected ratio. Choose Automatically depends on the relationship between source dimensions and timeline resolution; it is unsuitable for a controlled comparison if you expect every source to receive the same reduction. Select an explicit ratio for that test. Proxy resolution settings.

For an illustrative UHD source measuring 3840 × 2160, halving both dimensions produces 1920 × 1080. That represents one-quarter as many pixels per frame. It does not establish that the proxy will occupy one-quarter of the storage or play four times faster: the codec and encoding settings remain part of the comparison.

To continue working during generation in Resolve 21.1, open the Background Tasks preferences and enable Enable background renders and Proxy Generation. The manual says background rendering is disabled by default and can consume substantial system resources. Pause background renders on foreground activity lets generation yield while you interact with Resolve. Background rendering controls.

How can you compare the two fairly on your Mac?

Run a small acceptance test before committing to a full folder. The following sequence is an editorial test method, not a published benchmark. Its purpose is to reveal whether your chosen workflow produces usable, correctly linked media with an acceptable amount of waiting and storage.

  1. Choose three representative clips from your project, including different frame rates or audio arrangements if present.
  2. Create proxies through each route in separate test locations. Match output dimensions and codec as closely as the available controls allow.
  3. Record elapsed generation time and total output size. Note whether generation was running while you edited.
  4. Link one set at a time to the same source clips, and play the same short timeline section.
  5. Check the beginning, middle, and end of each clip for matching picture and audio timing.
  6. Restore originals and export a short section before selecting the workflow for the whole project.

Keep the playback conditions consistent. Comparing one proxy set with an already rendered effect cache against another without that cache would mix two different optimizations. Record the cache state and whether generation is still running. Resolve’s manual distinguishes portable source proxies from the render cache used to accelerate demanding timeline effects. Proxy media versus render caching.

For example, if both sets play your simple timeline smoothly, choose based on preparation effort: watch-folder automation may suit repeated incoming batches, while selected-clip generation may avoid processing footage you will not use. If only effects-heavy sections remain slow, investigate caching before generating another complete proxy set.

How do you confirm that Resolve is using the right files?

In the Media Pool list view, open a column heading’s contextual menu and enable Proxy and Proxy Media Path. The manual defines None as no associated proxy, Offline as an unavailable proxy at the recorded path, and a displayed resolution as an online proxy. These columns provide a more useful check than assuming a softer-looking viewer image proves proxy playback. Proxy status and path columns.

If a proxy is missing or has moved, select its original clip in the Media Pool, choose Link Proxy Media, locate the proxy file or directory, and click Open. For externally generated proxies, Resolve requires matching timecode, filename excluding the extension, and frame rate, plus a supported format and codec. A generic smaller video file does not automatically satisfy those conditions. External proxy requirements and linking.

For editing, choose Playback → Proxy Handling → Prefer Proxies. This falls back to originals when a proxy is unavailable. For a strict originals check, choose Disable All Proxies: missing originals then appear offline. Prefer Camera Originals is less conclusive because it can fall back to proxies when originals are unavailable. Proxy handling modes.

What changes in Fusion and Fairlight?

Keep three similarly named controls separate. Resolve’s generated proxy media consists of files on disk. Timeline Proxy Resolution reduces timeline working resolution on the fly. Fusion’s Proxy and Auto Proxy controls reduce image processing resolution while working on a composition. These controls serve different purposes. Resolve performance controls, Fusion proxy controls.

In Resolve’s Fusion page, open the contextual menu in the empty area behind the transport controls to enable Proxy. Set its ratio through Fusion → Fusion Settings, in the General panel. In standalone Fusion Studio, the corresponding transport button is Prx. Auto Proxy temporarily reduces resolution during parameter adjustments and restores it when you release the control. These are documented interactive preview controls; enabling them does not perform the watch-folder workflow. Fusion 21.1, “Using Proxies for Better Performance”.

For work continuing into Fairlight, include audio in the acceptance test. Resolve documents that in-app proxy generation embeds audio already synced to the source clip in the Media Pool. Check that the proxy contains the intended audio and remains aligned when you switch representations. Do not infer from that embedded audio that a proxy includes the project’s completed Fairlight mix. Synced-audio behavior during proxy generation.

Should Premiere or Final Cut Pro users generate proxies in-app?

If your edit stays in Premiere, its native workflow is a practical starting point. Import online source clips, select them in the Project panel, and choose Proxy → Create Proxies. Adobe documents a default Half frame size and ProRes QuickTime Proxy preset. Premiere sends generation jobs to Adobe Media Encoder, allowing you to continue working with the high-resolution project items. Its creation workflow requires eligible video clips without captions and excludes growing files. Create proxies in Premiere.

Existing external proxies require an attachment step: select the original clips and choose Proxy → Attach Proxies, then select matching properties and locate the files. Adobe supports attachment for video-only, audio/video, and offline clips; audio-only files, stills, and image sequences are excluded. Do not expect Blackmagic’s automatic Resolve association to carry into Premiere. Attach proxies to full-resolution media.

In the current Final Cut Pro for Mac guide, select clips in the browser and choose File → Transcode Media, enable Create proxy media, and choose the format and frame size. Apple lists ProRes 422 Proxy or HEVC, with sizes from 12.5% to 100%. These are the current guide’s choices; consult the version selector for an older installation. Apple explicitly instructs users to switch playback back to optimized/original media before sharing. Create optimized and proxy files in Final Cut Pro for Mac.

How do you finish from camera originals?

In Resolve, reconnect the original storage and select Disable All Proxies for an originals-only inspection. Resolve’s Deliver page uses original source media by default. Leave Use proxy media unchecked in the video render settings’ Advanced Settings when your intended output is from originals; checking it explicitly permits proxy-based rendering. Playback preference and export source selection are separate checks. Resolve proxy delivery behavior.

Choose the workflow that makes your preparation repeatable and passes the small linking, timing, playback, and export test. For a continuing stream of footage, that may be Proxy Generator’s watch folders. For a selected set of project clips with synced audio and specific output settings, it may be Resolve’s in-app generation. Keep the verified originals available through finishing, whichever route you choose.

Sources