There is a high current, 28 vdc to 13.8 vdc linear regulated supply described in the 1994 ARRL Radio Amateur's Handbook. That might be a good starting point. The challenge - it's a linear supply which means the power transistors waste the difference between 36 volts and 13.8 vdc. That's a lot of heat to manage but it can be done.
I would think that you could power the light with a PWM with a reasonably high frequency - maybe a kHz or two. SMPS would be better but the PWM is easier to construct.
While googling for a convertor for my computer (cigarette lighter in auto to my Dell laptop, 18 vdc) I ran across a company that made commercial inverters in the range you need. All I can recommend is google - I can't recall the name of the company.