Landline

Landline | landlinedocumentary.co.uk

Landline is a short documentary about the only helpline in the UK for gay farmers. Through a series of recorded telephone conversations and reconstructive visuals, the film uses the helpline as a lens through which to view the experiences of LGBTQ people in the British farming community. 

In a world that prizes traditional masculinity and in which ideas of ancestry are fundamental, being gay can be isolating. Suicide rates are extremely high in both young farmers and gay men in particular, and combining these can be a recipe for tragedy. But there are also thriving gay scenes in the most rural of towns, stories of unexpected friendships and relationships, and moments so unlikely that they could only happen in real life. Candid, intimate and shocking, Landline is a snapshot of a group of people bound together by circumstance but so often isolated from each other. 

A film by Matt Houghton | itsmatthoughton.co.uk

Winner: Best Documentary Short Grierson Awards 2018

Winner: HBO Documentary Short Film Award 
Runner-up: Best British Short London Short Film Festival

Nominated: Best UK Short Open City Documentary Festival

Nominated: Best Short Film Berlin British Shorts

BFI Flare FiveFilms4Freedom: seen over 460,000 times in 12 days

Official Selection: CPH:DOX, Sheffield Doc/Fest, BFI Flare, Aspen ShortsFest, Aesthetica Short Film Festival, DOC NYC, Leeds International Film Festival, Seattle Film Festival, THIS IS ENGLAND Film Festival, Ji.Hlava International Film Festival, Outfest LA, Shanghai Pride.

Father: Jem Dobbs

Son: Jonathan Blake
Father 2: Alex Thompson

Daughter: Niamh Blackshaw
Son 2: Bradley Johnson

Mother: Valerie Bundy
Farmer: Oliver Devoti


Directed by Matt Houghton
Producers: Rupert Williams, Alistair Payne-James

Executive Producer: James Sorton
Associate Producers: James Spinney, Peter Middleton
Casting Director: Lara Manwaring
Director of Photography: James Blann
Production Designer: Guy Thompson
1st Assistant Director: Tom Lancaster
Sound Recordist: Craig Rihoy
Costume Designer: Cynthia Lawrence-John
Make-up Artist: Charlotte Kraftman
Film Editor: Matt Houghton
Consultant Editor: Maya Maffioli
Music by Noah Wood
Sound Designer: Alex Bingham
Colourist: Simon Bourne
Head of Production & Talent Management: Jordan McGarry
Development Producer: Angeli Macfarlane
Producer, Short Film Schemes: Josic Cadoret
Production and Development Officer: Alice Whittemore

Very Special Thanks
Keith Ineson, The Richardson Family, Hannah Milne, The Ball Family, Marisa Clifford, Marie Cunningham, Kate Metcalfe, The Ivy House Pub, Vincent Gavin, Harriet Cannon, Nii Swaniker, Del Jones, Neil Tester, Craig Davis, Sam Bellamy, Jon Evans, Melissa Houghton, Jack Abbot, Liam Achaibou, Metal Culture, Daniel Grieshofer, Miles Blacket, Neil Andrews, Martin Kelly, Alistair Vlok, Mike Baldock and to everyone who shared their stories and experiences

A Pulse Films and Fee Fie Foe production

Gay Farmer Helpline | 07837 931894 | gayfarmer.co.uk

Cast: Matt Houghton