Using the ACES CDL grading mode

Livegrade implements the ACES color pipeline including IDT transforms, working color spaces such as ACEScct and ACEScc, LMT, RRT and ODT transforms to be used on camera live signals and still images (e.g. for reference) on the film set.

The ultimate goal is to create the same visual result on an on-set monitor (showing the ACES-processed live signal of a camera) compared to the monitors in a color corrector (showing the ACES-processed recorded source clips from the camera). Livegrade also offers export of ACES-based looks in the ACES Metadata File format (for ACES version 1.2 and newer).

The following diagram shows an example ACES pipeline as implemented in Livegrade.

Example ACES pipeline in Livegrade

Step-by-step: How to configure Livegrade to start using ACES#

  1. Open the Livegrade application.
  2. Go to the the “ACES” section in Livegrade’s settings (open via main menu Livegrade > [Settings…]) to set the ACES version for new looks and download desired ACES versions.
  3. Choose the grading mode “ACES CDL” or “ACES CDL Advanced” by selecting it from the grading mode dropdown in the slot settings.
  4. Select the intended input and output transform for your setup depending on camera input and display output.
  5. You will now be able to preview and manipulate the image signal in the selected ACES working space (ACEScc or ACEScct).

ACES grading modes#

Livegrade implements this pipeline in the ACES (Academy Color Encoding System) grading modes. You can see the nodes and controls of the “ACES CDL” grading mode in the screenshot below. On every interaction with the color controls of the ACES grading mode (e.g. change of input transform, modification of ASC-CDL) all transforms are baked together automatically and sent to an attached LUT box.

ACES grading mode

Livegrade also offers the “ACES CDL Advanced” grading mode. This grading mode lets you add multiple grading nodes such as curve and LMT nodes advanced workflows.

You can take a look at how to use the advanced modes in the article Grading Modes in Livegrade.

The CDL controls behave the same way as in the CDL+LUT grading mode and can also be exported as usual from a saved grade. ACES grades can also be exported as ACES Metadata File (*.AMF) and as 3D LUTs.

From ACES version 1.3 you can enable the “Reference Gamut Compress” parameter within the input transform node of ACES grading modes. The ACES Reference Gamut Compression achieves better accuracy with extreme color ranges and replaces the LMT “Blue Light Artifact Fix” that was widely used in previous ACES versions.

The metadata fields “ACES Input Transform”, “ACES Input TransformID”, “ACES Output Transform”, “ACES Output TransformID” and “Reference Gamut Compress” allow inspecting ACES look metadata in the shot library and communicating relevant info in PDF reports.

Look modification transforms (LMTs)#

You can add a “LMT” node in Livegrade (in the ACES CDL Advanced grading mode) that supports the official, predefined LMT transforms shipping with the respective ACES version as well as custom 3D LUTs.

Note: LMTs are specified by the ACES specification as a transform from and to ACES AP-0 (the linear ACES color space). Consequently, loaded LUTs in the LMT node will always be applied in ACES AP-0. For this reason the LMT node only accepts LUTs in the Common LUT Format (CLF) matching the ACES specification. If you need to load a 3D LUT (e.g., in a typical grading working color space such as ACEScct), you can add a 3D LUT node and load any compatible 3D LUT format without limitation. LUTs in the 3D LUT node will be applied in the working colorspace (ACEScct/ACEScc).

Managing ACES versions#

Livegrade supports multiple versions of ACES, ranging from 0.7.1, 1.0, to the latest ACES version 2.0. For compatibility with the post production workflow please choose the correct ACES version, as the transforms can be slightly different in different versions, and newer version usually include more and more recent input and output transforms, including RRT+ODT transforms for HDR in ACES version 1.1 or higher.

In Livegrade’s settings you can manage and download the available ACES versions and transforms at the “ACES” tab.

ACES settings

The dropdown lets you select the ACES version for new looks. Every new look will be initialized with the ACES version selected in the dropdown in the preferences.

Every look in the library made with an ACES grading mode has an associated ACES version (you can find that version in the “ACES Version” column). Saving looks with different ACES versions to the library will make it easy to compare the look of different ACES versions effortlessly.

In the section “Available ACES Transforms” you can find the available ACES versions and its associated transforms. The icon in the status bar will either signalize an available set of transforms (green checkmark) or a set of transforms that can be downloaded from the servers (download icon with downwards arrow).

Click the button “Check for New Versions” at the bottom of the preferences window to see if new ACES versions are available to download from the Pomfort servers.

Exporting ACES-based looks as AMF#

When working in ACES CDL or ACES Advanced grading mode in ACES version 1.2 or higher, you can export your looks as AMF files.

To do so

  • right-click on all shots in your library which you want to export
  • select [Export Shots As…]
  • in the opening save as dialog, choose [ACES Metadata File + CLF [combo] (*.amf)] as look format

After confirming by pressing Save , Livegrade will

  • save an individual AMF file for each shot which contains among other things:
    • information about the ACES look pipeline (input transform, output transform, ACES version)
    • CDL and Saturation values
    • references to used CLFs
Tip: Tip: To find more detailed information about exporting AMFs, check out the “Export look options from ACES looks” in our article about exporting shots.

Devices and utilization#

With Livegrade the ACES grading mode can be used in different setups, e.g. with LUT-Boxes such as the Teradek COLR, FSI BoxIO or TV Logic’s IS-Mini or directly with a monitor such as the Flanders Scientific DM250 broadcast monitor, that has processing capabilities included.

Note: Please note that for ACES color pipelines a LUT device with a LUT size of 33 (or higher) is recommended. Otherwise the device might introduce interpolation problems such as bending or wrong levels in some areas of the visible color space.

Supported ACES input and output transforms#

Livegrade offers all officially (in the Academy’s repository) available input and output transforms, as well as a few custom transforms by Pomfort. Please take a look at the available transforms in Livegrade’s preferences in the “ACES” tab.

CLF for custom IDTs#

You can also load custom input transforms (IDT) into your Livegrade look using the CLF file format.

To add a CLF as a custom input transform to your ACES look, please follow these steps:

  • Click on the input transform selector within your ACES look
  • Select User IDTs > [Show in Finder] to open the User IDTs folder on your system
  • Place the CLF-file which contains your custom IDT into the User IDTs folder
  • Go back to Livegrade and select your custom IDT with the IDT selector

Exporting a shot as AMF which contains a CLF as IDT will also automatically export the chosen CLF. The AMF will then include a reference that points to that certain CLF file. This ensures that an AMF export of your ACES look will contain everything another person in post-production will need to rebuild your look.

ACES landing page#

See https://pomfort.com/workflow/aces/ for an overview of ACES related topics with Pomfort’s products.

Last updated: October 14, 2025