Meet Our Team
Jackie McGriff
Co-Founder, Director & Producer
Deborah Alvarez
Co-Founder, Cinematographer & Editor
Courtney Shouse
Outreach Facilitator
Jackie McGriff (she/her/hers) is the owner of Jackie Photography and Co-founder, Director, and Producer of Our Voices Project. She's a full-time portrait, editorial, and event photographer as well as a documentary filmmaker whose mission is to provide a safe space and platform for teens, women, and people of color to recognize and embrace their bodies, live unapologetically, and share their stories.
You can hear Jackie talk about movies on the Our Voices Project's Representation in Cinema podcast where they take a critical look at how movies portray Black, Brown, and Indigenous people. She's also been a guest on several episodes of The Little Theatre's Movies and a Microphone podcast, WXXI's Connections with Evan Dawson podcasts, and other local podcasts, including We Need to Talk About the Oscars, a podcast dedicated to in-depth conversations about the 2023 Oscar Nominations.
She currently resides in Rochester, NY where you can find her either listening to movie scores, hanging out with friends and family, watching documentaries, and/or catching up on TV shows and films when she's not working on a creative project.
Deborah Alvarez (she/her/hers) is the Co-Founder, Cinematographer, and Editor of Our Voices Project, Video Production Assistant at the University of Rochester, and Freelance Videographer. Her mission is to encourage others to not be afraid to express their true selves and show people multiple perspectives through film and music. Bringing people together through art and song is what brings her the most joy. When she isn't filming or editing; movies, reading, photography, playing the ukulele, and outdoor adventures fill her time.
Courtney Shouse (she/her/hers) is the Outreach Facilitator for Our Voices Project. She is committed to interrupting the cycle of racism and dismantling systemic oppression and is focused on working towards achieving a more equitable society through education. Courtney is a Steering Committee Member and Educator for Showing up For Racial Justice, Rochester, NY (SURJ ROC), a member of the Indigenous People’s Day Planning Committee, and an active member of Irondequoit High School’s Equity & Diversity Coalition and Eastridge High School’s Diversity & Equity Team. She earned her Master's Degree in Human Service Administration and holds a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology and Women's Studies. Recently, Courtney earned a Certification in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). She works at Excellus, and volunteers as a facilitator for the company's DEI Book Club. Born and raised in the city of Rochester, Courtney currently lives in West Irondequoit with her family. She enjoys spending time with her teenage sons and husband, indoor cycling, and reading. Courtney strongly believes in creating opportunities for cross-racial dialogue and the sharing of real lived experiences to build empathy and connectedness among different groups with an emphasis on uplifting historically marginalized voices.