Christmas Laser Files: Five Free Downloads, Every ILDA Animation Free to Preview

BeamTracer's Christmas pack is a growing set of animated Christmas laser files: trees, ornaments, Santa and his sleigh, Rudolph, snowmen, snowflakes and Merry Christmas lettering, plus Santa, an elf, a gingerbread man, a snowman and a reindeer moving in full color. Five of them are free to download once you confirm your email for Product updates: Spiral Tree, the Ho Ho Ho lettering, and Santa, the elf and the gingerbread man dancing the YMCA in full color, in step with each other. Every file plays in your browser before you download it, and each one is a standard ILDA Format 5 file for your laser software or projector.

The free Spiral Tree file in the ILDA Viewer, with Cinema — Premium fog beams and the Orbit Mode camera. The beams are a software simulation of a projector in haze.

Where can I download free Christmas laser files?

Open the Christmas pack. Spiral Tree, Ho Ho Ho and the three YMCA dancers sit at the top under Free Christmas files and download free once you confirm your email for Product updates, the email that announces new laser files. You can watch them, and every other cue, without an account. The rest of the Christmas files play free and download with Pro (Laser), Bundle or Studio; Laser Show Files shows everything those plans include.

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To compare it with the rest of the pack, open ILDA Files and click Christmas under PACK. Click any cue and it plays in the INSPECTOR on the right. For Hanukkah, open the Hanukkah pack, and free holiday laser files lists the free files in every holiday pack; for free files beyond the holidays, such as beam shows and geometry, see where to get free ILD laser files.

How do I check the Christmas tree in the ILDA Viewer before downloading?

Click OPEN IN ILDA VIEWER on the tree's page. The ILDA Viewer loads the same animation as the download, and you can inspect it while signed out.

In 2D the tree zigzags on in one line, holds, then clears, the way the scanner traces it.

The cue plays at 20 frames per second. An ILDA file does not store a frame rate, so another player may run it faster. If the downloaded file plays too quickly when you reopen it in the ILDA Viewer, open PLAYBACK CONTROLS and set FPS to 20 fps. FPS changes the animation's timing; the scanner's points-per-second rate is a separate setting.

Can I see the Christmas tree in 3D before the show?

Yes. In the ILDA Viewer, click 3D, then set SCENE → BEAM MODE to Cinema — Premium fog and choose Orbit Mode for a camera that circles the room, as in the clip at the top. Click 2D again to see the tree without the room and fog.

Any plan can preview Cinema; below Studio the view carries a preview watermark. See pricing for current access. The 3D view helps you judge how the zigzag reads as a sheet of beams in haze. It does not tell you a room is safe: keep beams above the audience and follow the laser show safety guide before you work with hardware.

What is in the Christmas laser pack?

The drawn animations are in red, green and gold. Many draw themselves on in one flowing line, and each one loops without a jump, so you can repeat it as a cue. Santa, an elf, the gingerbread man, a snowman and a reindeer also come as full-color characters, drawn in their own colors.

The lettering writes each word on in script. Eight files move on the beat of a 120 BPM track: the ornaments on Ornament Tree twinkle in turn, Jingle Bells swing and ring, the Gift Box lid hops, Santa Ho Ho Ho laughs, Rudolph's nose pulses, a light runs round the Christmas Wreath, Christmas Lights chase, and Snowflake Pops add one snowflake per beat. In ILDA Files, set TIMING to ON THE BEAT to list them.

Sleigh Flight is a premium cue with a free preview. The reindeer gallop past the moon while the stars twinkle.

Is there a dancing Santa laser file?

Yes. Santa, an elf, a gingerbread man and a snowman dance in full color, each in their own colors: Santa in his red coat, white beard and green boots, the elf in a green hat and tunic with striped stockings, the gingerbread man with white icing, a holly collar and red buttons, and the snowman with a top hat, a red scarf and a carrot nose. Santa, the elf and the gingerbread man walk or sway, run, and do party dances such as the Chicken Dance, Macarena, YMCA, Swing Step, Pump and Point, Side Swing and the Maraschino Step. They also have holiday moves: Laugh (a big belly laugh, hands on the belly), Carry (walking with a big gift out front) and Toss (winding up and throwing a present). The snowman waves, bounces, sways, cheers and spins, and a reindeer looks around, tosses his head, walks and trots. The dances are short loops you can repeat as a cue. They play free in your browser and download with Pro (Laser), Bundle or Studio.

Santa YMCA · Full color in the 2D ILDA Viewer. Santa model: "hatch santa" by nitwit.friends (CC BY 4.0).

Santa and the gingerbread man dance through the YMCA, the Chicken Dance and hip hop in this 27-second Short, made from the same 2D previews:

Santa: "hatch santa" by nitwit.friends (CC BY 4.0). Gingerbread man: "Gingerbread Man" by aimee (CC BY 4.0). Dances: Mixamo. Music: “North Pole Dance Floor,” by BeamTracer.

Will these Christmas ILDA files play on my laser?

Each file is ILDA Format 5 (2D true color) at 20 frames per second, and each page tells you the smallest scanner that draws it cleanly. Most of the files fit 20K scanners (20,000 points per second) and up, including both free files. Santa Face, Rudolph, Christmas Lights, Snow Globe, Nativity and Snowflake Pops need 25K. Sleigh Flight, Santa Ho Ho Ho, Jingle Bells, Gift Box, Ornament Garland, Bauble Trio, Christmas Wreath, Angel and Gingerbread House need 30K, and Snowman and Advent Wreath need 35K. The full-color files need 20K to 30K: the elf and the reindeer fit 20K or 25K, and Santa, the gingerbread man and the snowman need 25K or 30K. Each one's page says which.

The files open in any laser software that reads ILDA files, including Pangolin QuickShow and Beyond, LaserCube LaserOS, Laserworld Showeditor and Showcontroller, and MadMapper MadLaser. The laser software table lists each one, and the ILDA Files questions cover downloads, plans and keeping your files.

How do I put Christmas laser files on a projector's SD card?

Check which format your projector reads first. Single-file downloads are Format 5. The library's SD CARD ZIP can also save Format 0, with short file names that SD-card projectors can show.

LIST.TXT in the ZIP lists which short name is which animation. The ILDA Files guide covers the SD card options, and the SD-card tutorial walks through preparing your own animation for a card.

Can I make my own Christmas laser animation?

Yes. If you have your own artwork, such as a family name over a tree or a company logo with a Santa hat, convert it yourself. The Halloween laser guide shows the same workflow with free SVG and Lottie art: import the drawing, check the scan, and export ILDA. The SVG to ILDA guide covers static drawings, and the Thanksgiving laser files post covers the autumn pack.