A co-worker and I attended the sixth annual Northwest Illinois Film Festival on April 29 on the campus of the Morrison Institute of Technology in Morrison.

This was a first for either of us so we went in with pretty much a blank slate. What I expected and what we got were very different experiences.

Going in I was anticipating a series of post-modern student videos. As Moe from “The Simpsons” explains postmodern: “weird for the sake of being weird.”

But what we received was a series of well-crafted short films made by and starring professionals.

The night started with a pair of deep and meaningful anti-gun violence PSAs, culled from the director’s personal experience.

The first feature short was a tale titled “Love Machine.” In getting to know each other early in a relationship, a pair of women exchange questions and answers. When one casually mentions she is an AI (not a robot, as that’s a slur in this world), the other is taken aback by how truly lifelike this “Replicant” is (shout-out to “Blade Runner”). We are led to believe this type of thing is not uncommon, even as the human is chastised for being uncomfortable. I think many of us can say we have a similar relationship with technology.

Up next, a narrative of amends and revenge, “On Broken Glass,” asked how far one would go for forgiveness. The title itself well explains the protagonist’s trial.

We then saw the cartoon “Drivin’ Me Looney,” the antics of Chucky Chicken and his flock of friends. This was one in a series of Chucky Chickens, so I was completely lost in the plot. It was definitely a palate cleanser from the previous work, but boy, we sure needed another after the next film took to the screen.

“Peter” opens with a man enjoying a night at home (in his pop-up Jayco) by preparing dinner for his pooch, or so it seemed.

We quickly learn the title character has a guest who is not there willingly. This little tidbit seems to be lost on our camping friend as he conducts himself as if some of the problems they are having in this “relationship” are just minor speed bumps, and her being (spoiler) dead is of no consequence. Alas, Peter decides to “end” this bond only to continue this disturbing cycle with a live (for now) human.

Yikes.

But here to save the first half of the festival was a documentary titled “The Last to Fall from Hero Street.” Just up the road from here in Silvis, there is a street renamed Hero Street that pays respect to the six young men (and many others who served) who died in World War II and the Korean War.

Only a block and a half long and home primarily to Hispanic families, the film tells the story of Second Street and how these heroes and their loved ones settled here in this small stretch of the city.

With no offense to the filmmakers of the second half, I was much less enamored with the films that came up next.

There was a very clever PSA on children and the dangers of smartphones and a quite hilarious story titled “The Talk,” in which a father confesses to his 8-year-old daughter that there is no Santa, only to have the tables turned with some of her own confessions, to his dismay.

In the same vein as the Hollywood production “Shutter Island,” “The First Session” takes the audience down an enigmatic psychological path, which in and of itself kept my attention, but I personally was distracted by the oftentimes terrible effects.

A deeply religious story was up next. “The Middle Cross” had a positive message, but felt aimed at a very specific audience. In what was a fun tour through diverse genres, this film brought the night to a halt.

There was a stylized and confusing work titled “Crimson” that was hard to follow until a credit at the end made mention of a female biology disorder.

I still don’t know what to make of “Chips or Crackers.” It is very well done, a little funny, but mostly confusing. About relationships, I guess.

Finishing the evening was “Enough?” It was a documentary outlining the damage we are doing to the planet for our needs versus wants. Filled with shocking statistics of what we as humans waste, it was an eye- opening fest-ender.

I’m quite satisfied with the night as a whole. The films elicited spirited discussions between my co-worker and me and made us appreciate an art that is oftentimes overlooked, especially when compared to large Hollywood productions.

• Alex T. Paschal is a Shaw Local photographer.