‘Sinners’ crew member Alan Certeza carries Guam roots through Hollywood

From making skate videos on Guam to the box office success of “Sinners,” Alan Certeza has carved out a rare path in Hollywood.

The CHamoru-Filipino native from Sinajana served as second camera assistant on the hit film “Sinners,” a major production starring Michael B. Jordan and Hailee Steinfeld and directed by Ryan Coogler.

The movie, which took 65 days to shoot in New Orleans, Louisiana has become one of the top-grossing films of the year.

“We had no idea that the film was going to be what it is now,” Certeza told the Pacific Daily News. “Working on the film, to me, it was just like another project I just needed to get through. Then we wrapped the film…out of nowhere, all the slow publicity and promos came out, and then more and more people started contacting me, like, ‘Congratulations on such a great job.’ I’m like, hell, what are these people talking about?”

Certeza’s role in the production was critical to the technical execution of Coogler’s vision.

“On ‘Sinners’, I worked as a second camera assistant,” he said. “It’s more of a technical position. The cinematographer wants to shoot this scene — it is up to the assistant, me being the second, to set up the camera to its right specs and just make sure that the camera is good to roll and able to execute what the cinematographer wanted visually.”

The film used rare and complex equipment, including a 65mm camera — one of only two in the world — and two types of IMAX cameras.

Shooting in Louisiana presented additional physical and environmental challenges.

“Sinners took 65 days to film. That was a really hard 65 days out in New Orleans,” he said. “Thunderstorms, rain so unexpectedly, and then also working with these cameras that weigh about 100 pounds…it was definitely a challenge, for sure.”

‘Working with family’

Certeza shared moments working closely with Michael B. Jordan, who portrayed twin brothers in the film.

“Going to work every day and hanging out with Michael B. Jordan — wow, that’s kind of cool,” he said. “It was quite interesting working with Michael B., because of his two different characters…I’d say something to him like, ‘Hey Mike, I put that mark there for you’ and then you kind of get this look, and I’m like, oh, Smokes. He’s acting as Smokes right now. Sorry.”

He described Steinfeld as “really pleasant and very sweet to work with.”

Under Coogler’s leadership, Certeza said there was a sense of community and mutual respect on the set.

“He definitely made it feel like I was working with family, or he made it a place where we were growing a family,” he said. “Every day he would take the time and ask you how you’re doing…I remember on this job, I ended up injuring my knee…As I was limping in front of the camera, Ryan called ‘cut’ just to make sure I was okay.”

That culture of care resonated deeply with Certeza, whose cultural roots are grounded in Guam’s family-centric values.

“Being from Guam, and when I say he made it feel like working with family, it really did feel like I was walking up to a relative’s little party and everyone there…I’m just comfortable being who I am.”

Though Coogler was focused on the film, Certeza said they occasionally talked about his upbringing and shared cultural common ground — Coogler’s wife and the film’s cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw are both Filipino, like Certeza.

“There was already that sense of familiarity between the two of us that we knew how to talk with each other, new mannerisms…to meet someone so randomly and then for him to just talk to us like we’re all kind of existing on the same plane, it’s been really, really fun.”

Visiting Guam

Despite being based in Los Angeles, Certeza remains closely tied to Guam.

“I fly back to Guam once a year. Recently, we’ve been trying to do it twice a year,” he said. “Last time I was back in Guam was in March.”

He returned to the island to present a film with Cara Flores-Mays.

His work ethic, which he says is shaped by his island roots, guided his approach on the set of “Sinners.”

“As crazy as this film is or was, there’s a lot of stressful moments, and I did my best to make sure that that stress, that anger, all those animosities, ended with me in order for me to better supervise the camera team,” he said.

Certeza said the film’s representation — both behind and in front of the camera — resonated personally.

“This film was written and directed from a person of color to being shot with a person of color and the cinematographer taking that pride…It was not every day on set that you get to see the crew that we had,” he said. “The talent that we had all in one place…This is definitely an experience, for sure.”

He hopes films like “Sinners” are not the exception.

“If there were more of these types of films being made…that’s the dream. I would really hope so,” Certeza said. “As far as this film, I just know, this film is a very rare current. I hope that there will be more, but everything that went into play of this film may or may not ever be done again.”

From skate tapes to silver screens

Certeza, who also attended George Washington High School, launched his creative journey with skate videos, a secondhand VHS setup, and a spark lit by his older brother—long before he found himself working on one of Hollywood’s top-grossing films this year.

“When I was in middle school, I was making skate videos with my friends that I really just enjoyed,” Certeza said.

His interest in filmmaking deepened after watching his older brother Arthur work on a high school video production class.

“He had this video production class and I just thought it was so cool. Like, whoa, what are you doing with those cameras? And then he showed me this high school yearbook video. And I was like, Wow, that’s so cool, how you did like the music and the transitions,” Certeza recalled. “So I started integrating that in my skate videos. I was doing two VHS with a C player and an amplifier. I was 14 at the time, and then continued making skate videos.”

By 16, a theater class at George Washington High gave him his first experience with storytelling as a group effort.

“I was like, wow, this is amazing. I get to act which I don’t act and we get to be a part of this group, this community,” Certeza said. “Then that program went away at George Washington High School, and afterwards, I just kind of continued making small little videos.”

Art Institute of Seattle

After high school, Certeza worked in photography jobs in Guam before leaving for Seattle two years later. He originally intended to enroll in a culinary program at the Art Institute of Seattle. That changed in a single moment.

“While sitting there getting this information, I saw a bunch of kids playing around with cameras and a boom pole running up and down the hallway. And I was like, ‘What are they doing? That looks like a lot of fun’,” he said. “And then so in that moment, I just kind of switched my major…and then since then, it’s been all uphill or downhill, however you want to see it.”

While at the Art Institute, Certeza didn’t just attend classes, he immersed himself in the craft.

“When I started the video program at the Art Institute, I didn’t know anything — absolutely nothing, about the industry, the terminology, or how things were done. I was just some kid who liked making skate videos,” he said. “In my second quarter, I was so determined to know more and more and more, I was kind of asking these advanced questions. The instructor would kind of pull me aside and give me these little tips and tips and tricks that he didn’t really release to the rest of the class.”

Moving to LA

However, he quickly realized Seattle lacked the film industry infrastructure needed to take the next step and decided to leave the Art Institute.

“I kindly asked my wife if she would give me the five years I need to come down to LA and get work.”

However, despite not graduating, he quickly picked up industry experience in Los Angeles.

He landed his first film job as a set dresser on “The Details,” starring Tobey Maguire and Ray Liotta. From there, he was hooked.

“It’s almost like watching an ant farm or just staring at a beehive — it’s just so chaotic, but we all know our purpose and what needs to happen for the greater cause of what we’re doing,” he said.

The journey took longer than expected when he landed “Sinners”.

“One of my biggest goals was, I always told my wife, Johanna, I just want to try,” Certeza said. “It took about seven years for me to get on to something really big of a budget…my biggest breaking point that brought me to Sinners was I got to do the Los Angeles unit for John Wick 4, and from there, I met the right person.”

Grounded in gratitude

Through it all, he remains grounded in gratitude.

“I’m just grateful that I’m able to be a part of it. Not many people in this line of work get to experience what I got to experience, and that I don’t take lightly,” Certeza said.

Today, he’s one of the few CHamoru-Filipinos working behind the scenes in major Hollywood productions, a journey more than a decade in the making, shaped by creativity, determination, and family support.

“Every day I work on set, it is obviously bigger than who I am, because I’m there representing, you know, my island, my culture, how I was raised,” Certeza said. “ My partner, I’m representing everyone, my mother, everyone that had anything to do with guiding me till this moment. So every day, I take that and I represent that and reflect that in my days.”

The opportunity came after a decade of effort. After initially receiving support from his wife to pursue a film career in Los Angeles, Certeza said she gave him “an extension.”

“I’m surprised she’s given this much time, to be honest…it took an additional five more years to get to where I am with this movie or with my career,” he said.

Years of work on smaller sets eventually led to a major opportunity with the Los Angeles unit of John Wick 4. From that project, he connected with people who brought him onto a film with Pamela Anderson — and then, “Sinners”.

“It took about seven years for me to get on to something really big on a budget,” Certeza said. “Sinners took 10 years after I got permission to come down to Los Angeles and put [my wife and I] through this mess. It took 10 years to start Sinners, but seven years to have met the right person in Los Angeles.”

His current success, he said, is inseparable from his Guam roots.

“I wouldn’t be who I am if I didn’t stay true to where I’m from,” he said. “The work that I do…I wouldn’t be able to do any of that if I’d never stayed connected.”

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