Movies are like pizza: Despite what you might think, there can be such a thing as too much of a good thing.

The Indianapolis International Film Festival went from a single-serving pie -- 24 films in 2004, its first year -- to a behemoth buffet of nearly 200 flicks in 2007. Even filmgoers with the biggest appetites found it impossible to digest it all, according to Brian Owens, director of the 5-year-old fest.

As a result, this year's slate is down to 137 films, with 50 of those being feature-length. Most movies will show three or four times instead of just twice.

"One of the things requested by festival goers was more chances to see films," he said.

Whether you like sexy comedies, sobering foreign dramas, thought-provoking documentaries or whimsical shorts, you'll find something to love at this year's fest, which runs Wednesday through May 3. (For a full schedule, visit www.indyfilmfest.org.)

To give you some guidance, here are four important themes for 2008. Call Star reporter Christopher Lloyd at (317) 444-6326.

Latino films

The IIFF has always had strong representation from Spain, though Latin America often lagged. That's changed this year, with 16 films from Latin America and Spain, including five features and two documentaries.

Among them is "Cochochi," a simple story set among the Tarahumara, an indigenous people who live in isolation in the state of Chihuahua. Two brothers look for their grandfather's lost horse while struggling with whether to learn Spanish and assimilate into Mexican culture.

Laura Guzman and her co-writer and co-director Israel Cardenas were working as cameramen on another film when they stumbled across Luis Antonio Batista and his brother Evaristo, who showed the filmmakers to their village. The next day, they met the boys again riding their grandfather's horse, which they had just found after a long search.

While the directors were shooting some landscapes for fun, the boys kept jumping into the frame. Eventually, Guzman and Cardenas decided to make a movie about the brothers, using their real names and town of Cochochi, but adding fictional elements.

"We wanted to make a portrait of this community," Guzman said from their office in Mexico City. "We did not want to do this portrait through a documentary, we wanted them to participate in it. But we wanted to do a film that was available to many people -- so it could be understood by children, or grown-ups, or Americans, or Europeans or Mexicans."

Showtimes

Cochochi (87 minutes): 5:30 p.m. April 27; 10 p.m. April 28 and 2:15 p.m. April 30.

Famous faces

Let's face it -- even the most jaded filmgoer is intrigued by famous people. This year's IIFF offers a bevy of celebs, who should be sticking around after the screenings to take questions. There's Famke Janssen, who played Jean Grey in the "X-Men" trilogy. Chris Eigeman, a mainstay from the films of Whit Stillman ("Metropolitan," "Barcelona") and the smarmy teacher from TV's "Malcolm in the Middle," will be on hand. Eigeman wrote and directed "Turn the River" starring Janssen.

Fans of "The Office" will get a chance to meet Craig Robinson, who plays Darryl Philbin and who had a memorable part as a bouncer in "Knocked Up." He stars in "The Frequency of Claire."

One famous Hoosier who's coming home is Fort Wayne native Dan Butler. The TV, stage and screen actor is best known as manic sportscaster Bob "Bulldog" Briscoe from the television series "Frasier."

Butler co-directed, co-wrote and stars in "Karl Rove, I Love You," a clever comedy that straddles fact and fiction. Butler plays himself, a supporting actor who yearns for the spotlight, and stages a play about the mysterious White House adviser.

Initially hostile, Butler begins to identify with Rove, much to the consternation of his friends and creative partners, all of whom play themselves in the film.

"I describe it as hovering somewhere between documentary and mockumentary, with most everything and everyone in it being real, except the premise," Butler said.

Showtimes

Turn the River (92 minutes): 8 p.m. April 25; 6 p.m. April 27.

The Frequency of Claire (25 minutes): 8:45 p.m. April 25; 7:30 p.m. April 29 and noon April 30.

Karl Rove, I Love You (97 minutes): 1:45 p.m. April 28; 8 p.m. April 29; 5:45 p.m. April 30.

Hoosier flicks

What would an Indianapolis film fest be without recognizing Hoosier filmmakers?

The Hoosier Lens Award will go to one of 14 films -- two features, 12 shorts -- that are set in Indiana or have a Hoosier among the principal crew.

One of the two feature nominees is "Quench," the second film by Richmond writer/director Zack Parker. His first, "Inexchange," was a character-driven horror film that was shot entirely on the campus of Ball State University.

"Quench" is harder to classify in any one genre, Parker said, because it has dramatic, erotic and horror elements. Set and shot in Richmond, it deals with a college student who comes home after a tragedy. He reconnects with his best friend from high school, but finds that his old buddy is running with a new and strange vampire subculture.

Hoosier lens films

Quench (98 min.) shows only once, at 10:15 p.m. April 26. In addition to it, the other Indiana films are:

Karl Rove, I Love You

Driftwood

Easy Pickins

Elevator People Bring You Up When You're Feeling Down

Catching Rats

Sticks and Stones Will Break

My Heart

The Frequency of Claire

Gradebook

Mortals

Static

The Art of Karaoke

Riley's Story

Jesus' Castle

World premieres

There's nothing grander than being able to boast about being the first to see a new movie. This year's IIFF features three world premieres.

In "May the Best Man Win," a bridegroom stages a competition between his two closest friends to see who gets to be best man at his wedding. "After the Fall" is a documentary about two journalists who return to Vietnam to cover the 30th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. "Cubanos: Life and Death of a Revolution" is described as an impressionist portrait of the Cuban community.

In addition, 16 films are making their Midwest premieres; 18 are making their first stop in Indiana.

"It is a level of pride," Owens said. "It's showing the growth and viability for filmmakers of our festival being a place to kick off."

Showtimes

May the Best Man Win (86 min.): 7 p.m. April 25; 3:30 p.m. May 1.

After the Fall (61 min.): 2 p.m. April 27; 5:30 p.m. April 29.

Cubanos: Life and Death of a Revolution (81 min.): 3:15 p.m. April 30; 9:30 p.m. May 1.