This taboo-busting documentary offers an intensely intimate and unflinching look into the secret world of hotlines. From psychics to sex, suicide to prayer lines, Hotline explores the hidden lives of callers and operators. As the universal quest for human connection grows, we hear how strangers fight isolation, whether on a personal line set up by ‘One Lonely Guy’ in NYC or through a rare glimpse into The Samaritans suicide prevention hotline.

As the story unfolds, we are privileged to meet and get to know a number of colourful characters: from Ms Cleo, the iconic spokeswoman for the Psychic Readers Network, to phone sex operators that buck industry standards by advertising their services with their real identity. Hotline takes us behind the scenes of truly personal conversations - listening in, yet always maintaining an exceptionally compassionate perspective.

At a time when we are told that the telephone is becoming an obsolete technology, many hotlines are experiencing record numbers of calls. This film uncovers under-served and marginalised communities, highlighting the resources and people dedicated to serving them and their needs.  Hotline seeks to open up a conversation about how we deal with loneliness and isolation… and how sometimes the help and support we need can only come from a stranger.