The Show-Me Missouri International Film Festival presents more than art films and workshops — although there are plenty of both today through Sunday at four venues.
Like Christian-based family features? The festival has one. "Welcome to Paradise" stars Crystal Bernard of "Wings" and Brian Dennehy. How about a film about soccer great Pele, or famous sports announcer Harry Caray?

The Missouri Film Alliance of Springfield festival has those, too, and numerous international, Academy Award-winning, homegrown and animated shorts. Plus a wide variety of documentaries.
"We focused more on the entertainment value, and outreach to the community," says one festival organizer, Mark Biggs, who teaches filmmaking at Missouri State University and is board chairman for the Missouri Film Commission.

Janet and Gary Weber aren't film buffs and wouldn't normally attend this kind of event. Yet they plan to take soccer-playing sons Garrett, 5, and Blake, 10, to "Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos," a film about the soccer team that brought Pele to America.

Blake saw part of the film once before, he says: "It was good. And pretty interesting."

Current MFAS president Steve "Ole" Olson says last year's festival was a success. But this year's is even better, with more competitive films. At least two — "Waiting to Inhale" and "Libby, Montana" —are slated to air soon on television.

"We went from 60 to over 150 films submitted," says Olson. "We've focused on bringing in as many good films as we can."

Festival participants can also attend acting, film and special-effects workshops. And they'll meet industry professionals including:

- Brent Huff, a Hollywood actor, director and screenwriter who co-wrote and directed "Welcome to Paradise." Huff — who dropped the "t" from his family name, Hufft — graduated from Kickapoo High School and attended the University of Missouri. He has appeared in more than 50 films, on numerous TV shows and modeled for the Eileen Ford agency. In recent years he directed "100 Mile Run" (HBO) and "Treasure Raiders."

- Paul Crowder directed and edited "Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos." A founding member of the band Floggin' Molly, he also edited 50 episodes of VH1's "Behind the Music" and the documentaries "Dogtown and Z-Boys" and "Riding Giants." Crowder, whose wife is from Springfield, is working on a film about The Who.

- Tom Seymour, a special-effects pyrotechnician from St. Louis, has worked on numerous hits, including "Honey, I Blew Up the Kid," "Titanic," "The Mummy" and "Armageddon," plus the more recent "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" and "Alpha Dog." He works on TV's "Jericho."

- Drury "Dru" Gunn Carr produced the documentary "Libby, Montana." Carr, a Parkview grad, lives in Montana and has made more than 15 nonfiction films, including four feature-length documentaries. "Libby, Montana," about troubles in a town after local asbestos mines close, will air as part of the PBS series "P.O.V."

Festival appearances also include indie filmmakers, the TV crew from CMT's "Trick My Truck" and Springfield Cardinals executives, cheerleaders and mascot.

As an actor, Huff has primarily made action movies. "Welcome to Paradise" is a family movie about a female evangelical preacher (and single mom) who struggles to gain acceptance from her small-town congregation.

It may be the first of Huff's films his parents — who live in Springfield, as does a sister — can enjoy. Some of his others, he says, "are a little racy."

While in Springfield, he and "Paradise" producer Patrick Stack will explore shooting a fishing comedy in the Ozarks. Huff's wife, actress Shawn Furman, and 16-year-old daughter Bailey --Êan extra in the film — will also attend the festival.

Huff's father, Charles Hufft, is a Southern Baptist minister, currently at Northwest Baptist Church. Growing up as a preacher's son inspired many scenes in "Paradise," says Huff. It even includes a teenager who plays basketball and struggles with dyslexia —just as he did.

Huff remembers seeing his first movie at the Gillioz Theatre.

"I could not be more excited," says Huff, "to come to my hometown and screen at the theater where I started watching movies."