AnamorphicTool Launched – Two OFX Plugins for DaVinci Resolve Fixing Optical Issues and Adding Anamorphic Lens Characteristics

Editing Software

by Johnnie BehiriMarch 18^th, 2026

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Bruce, an independent developer, has released AnamorphicTool, a suite of two OFX plugins for DaVinci Resolve designed specifically around the optical physics of anamorphic lenses. The suite includes AnamorphicUtility, a correction pipeline for real anamorphic footage, and AnamorphicFX, a vintage-inspired emulation tool that works on any footage.

The anamorphic shooting space has grown considerably over the past few years, driven by affordable glass from manufacturers like BLAZAR and SIRUI, as well as cameras with dedicated open-gate and anamorphic filming modes. With more shooters using vintage and budget-oriented anamorphic lenses, post-production headaches have followed: horizontal softness from desqueeze, “swimming” or “fishbowl” distortion at the edges of wide-angle primes, and alignment skew from adapter-based setups. AnamorphicTool targets those specific problems while adding a separate creative toolset for emulating anamorphic effects on any footage.

Bruce, who describes himself as an independent developer and anamorphic lens enthusiast, built both plugins as OFX tools for DaVinci Resolve (OFX =Third-party visual effects plugins that expand the software’s capabilities). There is currently no Premiere Pro support, though the developer has indicated that it could change depending on user interest. A trial is available without purchasing a license, and a getting-started tutorial is live on YouTube.

AnamorphicUtility: a fixed correction pipeline for real anamorphic footage

AnamorphicUtility is structured as a three-stage pipeline that runs in a fixed order: Anamorphic Sharpen, Edge Compression, then Skew Alignment. Each stage addresses a distinct optical problem common to shooting anamorphic.
The sharpening stage applies horizontal-only sharpening to compensate for the resolution asymmetry introduced by desqueeze. Because anamorphic lenses compress the horizontal axis of the image, desqueezing in post stretches that axis back out, which tends to produce softer horizontal detail compared to vertical. Applying uniform sharpening would over-process the vertical, so AnamorphicUtility limits the sharpening operation to the horizontal axis only.

The Edge Compression stage targets what many anamorphic shooters know as the “swimming” or “fishbowl” look, a pronounced edge over-compression that distorts straight lines toward the periphery of the frame. The developer specifically notes this is a known characteristic of the BLAZAR Remus 35mm and 45mm, as well as the BLAZAR Cato 40mm and 55mm. The correction is designed to pull the edges back toward a more rectilinear appearance without requiring manual keyframing or warping tools.

The third stage handles skew alignment, which is a common issue when using anamorphic adapters. Adapters mounted even slightly off-axis can introduce a rotational skew to the image that becomes visible after desqueeze. This stage offers a correction for that misalignment, saving the alternative approach of manually rotating the clip and cropping to compensate.

AnamorphicUtility v1.0 summary:

Three anamorphic utility effects applied in a fixed pipeline order (Sharpen → Edge Compression → Alignment):

• Anamorphic Sharpen: X-axis unsharp mask targeting horizontal lens softness; None/Low/Mid/High/Custom presets; clamp-to-edge sampling prevents white fringing at frame boundaries
• Anamorphic Edge Compression: Relative displacement warp for correcting anamorphic edge squeeze; None/Low/Mid/High/Custom presets
• Grid Line: Optional guide overlay for Edge Compression tuning; dense, thick, symmetric lines shown only in impacted edge areas
• Anamorphic Alignment: Corner-pin / homography-based skew correction using normalised coordinate space
• Quality Settings: Draft, Normal, and High quality modes
• GPU Acceleration: Metal on Apple Silicon; CUDA on NVIDIA GPU (RTX 20+); CPU fallback

AnamorphicFX: vintage lens emulation for any footage

AnamorphicFX is the creative half of the suite and operates differently from AnamorphicUtility. Rather than correcting existing optical characteristics, it adds them. Importantly, it is not restricted to anamorphic footage. Spherical lens footage is equally valid input, which opens the tool up to colorists and editors who want to give digital footage an analog-adjacent quality without having shot on anamorphic glass at all. The plugin is organized into five collapsible groups: Edge Compression, Lens Geometry, Smearing, Chromatic Aberration, and Vignette. Each group can be toggled independently, allowing for a modular approach to the overall look.

The Edge Compression group flips the logic of the correction tool and instead adds edge over-compression to the footage, replicating the “swimming” associated with vintage anamorphic wide-angle lenses. The Lens Geometry group applies barrel distortion, which the developer describes as more effective than DaVinci Resolve’s native distortion tool for producing the type of geometric deformation that anamorphic enthusiasts tend to prefer.

Smearing simulates a visual artifact associated with vintage anamorphic lenses, where high-contrast horizontal edges bleed or trail. Alongside the Chromatic Aberration and Vignette groups, these controls are designed to work together without requiring fine-tuning of individual parameters to achieve a cohesive look. The developer is explicit that the goal is a controllable and subtle result, with AnamorphicFX not intended as a simulation of any specific lens.

A standalone demo of AnamorphicFX is available on YouTube, and a second demo applies the plugin to footage from our short documentary shot on the FUJIFILM GFX ETERNA 55 with SIRUI IronStar anamorphic lenses, viewable here.

AnamorphicFX v1.0 summary:

Complete anamorphic lens emulation with advanced optical effects:

• Input Squeeze Ratio: Compensates for squeezed anamorphic footage on the timeline (1.0×–2.0×, nine presets)
• Edge Compression: Anamorphic-style edge compression with strength, range, and falloff controls; None/Low/Mid/High/Custom presets
• Lens Geometry: Barrel distortion with anamorphic bias and range; None/Low/Mid/High/Custom presets
• Smearing: Field curvature smear with anamorphic bias; None/Low/Mid/High/Custom presets
• Chromatic Aberration: Integrated CA group (lateral/radial modes, edge-weighted); None/Low/Mid/High/Custom presets
• Vignette: True elliptical vignette with strength, bias, range, and shape control — standalone group, always live, no preset
• Collapsible parameter groups: Five sections in the Resolve inspector (Edge Compression, Lens Geometry, Smearing, Chromatic Aberration, Vignette)
• Quality Settings: Draft, Normal, and High quality modes
• GPU Acceleration: Metal on Apple Silicon; CUDA on NVIDIA GPU (RTX 20+); CPU fallback

Platform support and performance

Both plugins run as OFX tools inside DaVinci Resolve. On Windows, GPU acceleration uses CUDA and requires an RTX 20-series or newer card. On macOS, the plugins use Metal and support both Apple Silicon and Intel systems. A CPU fallback is available on all platforms and requires no additional configuration. The OFX standard means both plugins integrate into the Resolve node graph like any other color or effects node, without separate launching or external rendering. This keeps the workflow contained within Resolve, which matters for colorists and editors who prefer not to round-trip footage to other applications for optical corrections.

AnamorphicTool is now available at anamorphictool.com for $19.99, with a free trial before purchase.

Have you been dealing with edge distortion or horizontal softness from your anamorphic lenses in post? Does a purpose-built correction and emulation suite like AnamorphicTool fit into your DaVinci Resolve workflow? Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments below!