Operator

Free

Kate Dickie is on terrific form here in this tensely crafted short feature. She is ''Lorna'', an emergency co-ordinator for the fire service who responds to a 999 call from the panic-stricken ''Gemma''. Her home is on fire and her young son is trapped upstairs, and so having despatched the fire brigade, ''Lorna'' attempts to keep her caller calm and safe until assistance arrives. Of course, the mother isn't about to stay safely at the bottom of the stairs whilst her child is at risk, and so as the situation becomes even more perilous the lifeline of this telephone conversation becomes even more important. What will become of the family? Well the one thing for sure is that within moments of the conclusion of the call, ''Lorna'' is back on the phone with the next caller. This is very intensely photographed and using some sparing but effective audio effects, we really do get a sense of not just the fear of the potential victim but also of the investment of woman handling the call. The dialogue could well have been written by someone experienced in this field of rapid response operations, as it has a very human and real feel to it and this really is quite a compelling six minutes of cinema.