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Jodi Purdy-Quinlan has been a member of the Screen Actors Guild since 1986 and a director at Diane Purdy's Children's Theatre Workshop, Inc. since 1980. Jodi has been working in the field of 'casting' since 1980 and has personally introduced 100's of talented children to New England, New York and Los Angeles Casting Directors.Jodi's most recent credits include: Casting 10,000 extra roles in the feature film "The Game Plan" starring "The Rock"; casting 1,500 extra roles in the feature film "Pink Panther 2" starring Steve Martin; casting 1,500 extra roles in the feature film "The Lonely Maiden" starring Christopher Walken; casting 1,300 extra roles in the feature film "Real Men Cry" starring Ethan Hawke and Mark Ruffalo and casting 1,700 extra roles in the feature film "Bride Wars" starring Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway.Her credits include casting 16 girls between the ages of 11 and 13 as an "Angel Choir" in the Warner Bros. feature film "The Departed" being directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin, Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Wahlberg and Robert Wahlberg. Jodi also cast an additional 25 kids between the ages of 4 and 18 in the film and 150 men and women.The scene was shot at the Marriott Long Wharf Pier in Boston and featured Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg and Robert Wahlberg.In 2002, Jodi held auditions for boys and girls of various ages to appear in a variety of roles in the Academy Award Winning Warner Bros. feature film "Mystic River" directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Sean Penn (Best Actor), Tim Robbins (Best Supporting Actor), Kevin Bacon, Lawrence Fishburne, Laura Linney and Marsha Gay Harding.Jodi introduced then 14-year old Andrew Mackin of Weymouth to the Boston and New York casting directors and they introduced him (via videotape) to Clint Eastwood and he was cast as one of the killer's "John O'Shay" in the film.In addition, Jodi cast 30 six to seven year old boys and girls as the "First Holy Communion Recipients" in the film, as well as 4 altar boys and an additional 100 men, women and children for the scene.Jodi worked with Boston and Rhode Island casting directors on the Showtime original dramatic series "Brotherhood" during the first season.In her 28 year career working in the casting industry, Jodi has given 1,000's of children and adults opportunities to audition and perform in print ads, television commercials, feature films, television programs, industrial films, educational videos and professional theatre productions.In 1970, Diane Purdy gave her 9-year-old daughter, Jodi, the opportunity to audition at Curtain Call Theatre (CCT), a community theater located at 398 Bridge Street in Bicknell Square, North Weymouth (present day Bridge Antiques). Jodi was cast as one of King Arthur’s wicked half sister, Morgan LeFay’s faerie imps in CCT’s production of “Camelot”. Diane, who played Morgan LeFay, was so moved by Jodi’s enthusiastic portrayal and passion for the theatre, she decided to open a children’s theatre for Jodi and other local children in her North Weymouth home. In 1970, the first Diane Purdy’s Children’s Theatre Workshop (CTW) productions were staged at the Third Universalist Church in Bicknell Square (now Unitarian Universalist Church of Weymouth, www.uuweymouth.org ).In 2004, CTW came full-circle when Jodi opened Purdy-Quinlan Studio’s across the street in Bicknell Square. Purdy-Quinlan Studio’s has offered a wide-range of programs, including productions of Diane Purdy’s original plays (www.playsplus.com) in the style of Diane’s ‘drama-by-doing’ method of training. In addition, there has been workshops for “On-Camera Acting Techniques” for those students interested in auditioning for roles in television and film. There have been seminars on the business of professional acting and so much more! Jodi continues to offer students and adult the opportunity to audition for movies, commercials, television and professional theatre through Jodi Purdy's Casting Connection.SOUTH SHORE INSIDER - JODI PURDY-QUINLAN: She’s a molder of young thespiansCasting director Jodi Purdy-Quinlan of Weymouth wears two hats: She recruits extras for movies being made in this area and runs a theater workshop for children. (DEBEE TLUMACKI/The Patriot Ledger)By ANTHONY CAPUTO The Patriot Ledger More major studio movies are being filmed in Massachusetts this year than in recent years because of new tax incentives. This may make Jodi Purdy-Quinlan’s already busy schedule a bit tighter, but she doesn’t seem to mind.The owner of Purdy-Quinlan Studios on Middle Street in East Weymouth has cast extras for a number of movies in the area. She is currently working with the crew of "The Game Plan.’’At the same time, Purdy-Quinlan, a 45-year-old resident of East Weymouth, has been moving from Bicknell Square in North Weymouth to a new location on Middle Street. The new studio is opening this week.Purdy-Quinlan is also the president of Diane Purdy’s Children’s Theatre Workshop, which was founded by her playwright mother, Diane Purdy. During a children’s theater season, up to seven volunteers help her, and the parents also lend a hand.Do you face any challenges as an acting studio on the South Shore?What we do is different. We offer something unique in this field. My mother started this theater for me 36 years ago. Her theory is: drama by doing. We put on (professional quality) shows for these kids and the plays are all written by my mother; she’s an award-winning playwright.It’s straight drama. The kids learn really how to interact with each other. We don’t put on musicals and we challenge the students and we challenge ourselves. That’s what we do for these kids. We offer them the opportunity to feel the intenseness of a theater program, like really being in a play. We don’t pretend by playing theater games. We provide them with scripts and roles; everybody gets a meaty role with lots of lines and cueing and we challenge the kids by really putting on professional shows.What do you do that’s different?It’s that we have tailor-made plays that are all original. We tailor them to the children. We cast the children for the best role for them, rather than cast the role.So we cast the kids according to their ability and as they develop we can build their roles. So in other words, if as we’re going along, we find a kid has all their lines memorized and they’re ready to go, we can give them more if they want to be challenged. ...If we have given a kid too much and they’re having trouble with it, we can take lines away and make it easier for them.Have you seen more movies coming to New England lately?Well the state (established) the tax incentive in January. "Stiffs’’ was supposed to start filming (last) November, but when the tax incentive got passed (last fall), they held off production until January, so that they could get the tax break."Gone, Baby, Gone’’... was set in Boston and that’s where Ben (Affleck) wanted to film it. So, the tax incentive didn’t hurt. Now they can afford to put their people up in the hotels.It’s mainly people from L.A. for "The Game Plan’’ and you need to put people up in hotels. You need to build a sound stage. They’re filming all of this in (the Boston area). ... It’s huge for the industry.What do you see in your future and that of Purdy-Quinlan Studios?The (Children’s Theatre Workshop) will continue to grow, we’ll continue to offer theatrical experience for children on the South Shore and I will continue to connect people in the casting business. After the holidays, (in) the beginning of the year I’ll be offering on-camera acting classes for children and adults who want to learn how to audition.So I hope Purdy-Quinlan Studios will be... a place where people can come and learn about theater, the movie industry, television. I think this is one of the most important things... that I provide one-on-one consulting for a very reasonable fee to talk to parents about the do’s and don’ts of this business and what not to do and what not to fall into, (and) how to actually get their kids involved in this industry without spending thousands of dollars unnecessarily. I’ve seen so many people get taken by organizations that are less than honorable. There (are) ways to be exposed to this business without going bankrupt.Copyright 2006 The Patriot Ledger Transmitted Wednesday, October 11, 2006