Elation transforms lines of light into three-dimensional stage design for X Games League concerts

During the first summer season of the MoonPay X Games League (XGL) in Sacramento, California, OSA International debuted the Rebel Line 16 linear tilt bars from Elation in the event's largest music production to date, featuring nightly concerts.

Seeking a linear bar capable of creating striking chevron-shaped arrangements and delivering strong visual impact, Lighting Designer Anthony Padilla found a fixture that not only offered new creative possibilities but also stood out for its technician-friendly design.

With more than 40 years of experience, OSA International is a full-service production company that has invested in 26 Rebel Line 16 fixtures. As one of the first companies to adopt the fixture, it selected these IP55-rated linear tilt bars for both the growing X Games music production and its extensive portfolio of corporate events, festivals, concert tours and special events.

Held from 26 to 28 June at Heart Health Park in Sacramento, the inaugural XGL Summer event marked the debut of a new global, team-based X Games format. At the end of each day's sporting competitions, the venue transformed into a large-scale music festival featuring headline performances by Kaskade, Subtronics and Mustard.

OSA International, which has provided technical production services for X Games events for more than a decade, has been involved in developing its expanding music programme since 2024.

Designing around the X

Production Lighting Designer Anthony Padilla created a striking stage design centred around a massive LED video "X", flanked by chevron-shaped arrays of Rebel Line 16 fixtures mounted on raked trusses. This arrangement gave the overall design a dramatic three-dimensional appearance. High-powered strobes were interspersed between the Rebel Line fixtures.

There were areas that needed more visual action, so I designed these arrows on both sides of the stage to accentuate the X and draw the audience's attention. I needed a linear bar that would allow me to shape those chevrons and add a striking line of pixels, something lighting designers could have fun experimenting with, explains Padilla. 

OSA is currently expanding its inventory of IP-rated equipment and evaluated various outdoor-rated linear fixtures.

"We started looking for equipment we could use at X Games that would also meet the everyday needs of our corporate events and festivals. We wanted something durable and versatile, a fixture that could be installed on a festival stage but would also perform well in camera-based productions, where colour rendering is essential".

More than a linear bar

Powered by high-output 60W RGBL LEDs, the Rebel Line 16 delivers more than 25,000 lumens through a seamless linear lens that produces a uniform beam with no visible breaks.

Its fast 4° to 35° zoom, 210° tilt movement and integrated SparkX array of 5W cool-white LEDs make it possible to create everything from wide washes and pixel effects to sharply defined aerial effects. Its IP55 rating also makes it suitable for outdoor productions.

Padilla experienced the fixture's versatility throughout the event, including an unexpected application during the televised medal ceremonies.

"There was a moment, just before the music started, when the medal ceremony was being broadcast", he recalls. "I placed eight Rebel Line 16 fixtures along the downstage edge, tilted them upwards, quickly dialled in a white, opened the zoom to its widest setting and used them as front lighting for people's faces. They worked beautifully. The light looked wonderful on people's skin, proving that they could be used as truly versatile fixtures".

During the music performances, the Rebel Line fixtures became an integral part of the stage architecture, providing visiting artists' lighting designers with a flexible system they could easily incorporate into their own programming.

"I had 24 Rebel Line fixtures to work with, so they became much more than simple linear bars", explains Padilla, who also handled lighting for artists who did not have their own technical crews on site.

I could use them for uplighting, curtains of light, colour washes, bursts and pixel effects. Some of my favourite looks came from switching everything else off — the video screens and all the other lighting — and leaving only the Rebel Lines on. They created huge curtains and pockets of light through the stage haze. The result was spectacular. Then, all of a sudden, the visual content would return to the X.

Designed with production needs in mind

Padilla also highlighted the fixture's build quality and attention to small details.

"Another aspect that impressed me was the build quality", he says. "Details such as the retracting zoom, locking positions, sliding Omega brackets, pixel flips and sun protection all make a difference when preparing a show. We weren't fighting the fixture: it was clearly designed with technicians in mind. It's a fun, powerful fixture, and I think that as more designers use it, they'll discover even more possibilities".

A versatile investment

For OSA International, the purchase represents a strategic investment in fixtures capable of supporting a wide range of productions.

We wanted to replace some of our ageing LED battens and were looking for an outdoor-rated fixture that offered greater versatility. The other linear fixtures we had seen on the market didn't really excite us, but the Rebel Line 16 immediately stood out for its brightness, split 2x8-pixel design, zoom and tilting capabilities. It's a versatile fixture that fits perfectly with the wide variety of events we produce, from corporate productions and special events to concert tours and festivals, explains Mark Fetto, Vice President of Lighting at OSA International.

Headquartered in Chicago, with full-service production operations in Las Vegas and Nashville, OSA International provides comprehensive production solutions for live events, entertainment, corporate productions and permanent installations.

The investment in Rebel Line 16 reflects the company's long-standing philosophy of adopting new technologies that deliver value across different production environments.

XGL features two seasons each year: a summer season dedicated to skateboarding and BMX, and a winter season focused on snowboarding and skiing. Athletes compete for their respective X Games Clubs across multiple events during each season, accumulating points towards the championship title.