You either love him or you hate him. When it comes to opinions on Donald Trump, there is no middle ground. 

 

Or perhaps there is. It's just that the creative perspectives get drowned out by the din of passionate partisanship on either side. 

 

Donald Trump may be more complex than most think and less easy to caricature. That's what award-winning filmmaker and author Robert Orlando believes.

 

In his upcoming film "Trump's Rosebud," Orlando examines the tumultuous life and multifaceted career of media mogul, business baron, T.V. star, and former President Donald J. Trump by exploring his and Trump's favorite film, “Citizen Kane.”

 

Orlando shows how Trump's ascent to the top of the world stage reflects the strategic rise to power of Charles Foster Kane, the main character in “Citizen Kane." 

 

Will he find Trump's Rosebud, the crucial turning point in his life? What drives his ambition and need for recognition?

 

Trump saw the presidency as a role of a lifetime - the natural culmination of a life built around accumulating fame and prestige - which he acquired, as Orlando reminds us, while "also honing his media skills. "

 

"Both men came from affluence but wanted to speak for the commoner. Both were savvy with media and sound bites and knew how to utilize headlines," said Orlando. 

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"Trump's Rosebud" is loosely based on Orlando's book, "Citizen Trump," by Simon & Schuster, and the unfinished movie of the same name. The film was slated for an earlier release, but due to COVID, industry delays, the political climate, and censorship, Orlando had to delay its debut until now. 

 

Trump is one of the most influential figures of the 21st century. Both Right and Left, friends and enemies, have said their part, and now it's a biographer filmmaker's turn to unpack the sensation of Trump. 

 

"That's all we need, another political film! My impulse was a filmmaker's deeper dive into the media, the role of Media from early on in Trump's life," said Orlando.

  

With decades of film experience as an award-winning director, screenwriter, and author, Orlando's completed several documentaries on topics ranging from WWII's George Patton to John Paul II and Ronald Reagan. 

 

The first time around, the Citizen Trump film was censored. "We launched the project in 2020, and my social media team told me that the positive Amazon reviews were blocked." said Orlando.

 

"I guess the film was 'too fair to Trump,' explained Orlando, but "Some friendly fire also blasted me!"

 

"Our culture is so bereft of independent content. As a result, digital tribalism has overtaken our spirits with bitterness and a sense of nihilism."

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"Trump's Rosebud" promises to be entertaining, full of surprises, and filled with his style. It's Trump's show. "I am just a guy in the audience eating popcorn and watching," said Orlando.

 

"Trump's Rosebud" traces Trump's life from his early days in Queens, through his first launch in Hollywood to his real estate business, The Apprentice, and finally to the White House. "We know how it all happened. I want to know: Why did it all happen?" explains Orlando.

 

"I don't have derangement syndrome, and I also don't indulge in psychobabble, but like Welles's Kane, every story does have a beginning, and where we come from does shape our lives, warts and all." Orlando concludes.

  

Trump, like Kane, amongst other things, must also be viewed through the prism of his childhood, influences, and life experiences, from which no one escapes that later become our character and destiny. 

 

"No one is one-dimensional -- people are complex," said Orlando. "And successful people like Trump are even more complex, which means ghosts, wounds, call it what you will. For now, let's call it Trump's Rosebud."

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