Most of the application provided in the DVSDK use Codec Engine (DMAI apps, Gstreamer app). Take a look at the DVSDK Software Developer's Guide.
As part of the DVSDK, there is a way to build some simpler Codec Engine examples. Issue the following from the top pf your DVSDK installation:
% make help
This will give you a list make targets to issue to build the ceexamples.
You can also take looking at the following CE wiki page to get more familiar:
http://processors.wiki.ti.com/index.php/Category:Codec_Engine
I hope this help with getting you started.