WATCH THE TRAILER
Film Director Robert Orlando releases his director’s cut of “Citizen Trump: A One Man Show” today, leading up to the June 15 release of the riveting Simon & Schuster “Citizen Trump” book. With added supporting details and documentation in the new book, the Nexus Media film exposes the rest of the hidden story: how the media unwittingly fueled Trump’s rise to power every time it tried to thwart him – and how media behavior still encourages a continuing rise in Trumpism.
Princeton, NJ, June 08, 2021 --(PR.com)-- Ten months after the debut of “Citizen Trump: A One Man Show,” director Robert Orlando is back with a clarifying Director’s Cut now available online. The newest Nexus Project film shows a “never before known” Trump. It debuts today as Simon & Schuster releases the book version on June 15.
The media has spent decades depicting Donald Trump as a political phenomenon/businessman. Still, the new film reveals the real Trump behind the media mask: Trump: the born showman and Hollywood producer/performer who uses media attacks as fuel to advance his America First agenda.
In Trump’s favorite film, “Citizen Kane,” confused reporters spend the whole time trying to figure out the famous Kane (Orson Welles). The predominantly black and white “Citizen Trump” film and book similarly show how Trump used his favorite movie to roadmap his way to “winning bigly,” leaving media dazed and clueless, unaware their antics were helping him.
“Citizen Trump” gives never before seen insights into the man who became a hero to 75 million supporters and a hated upstart “big daddy” rival to the media establishment that never understood him. So why did the media keep calling Trump dangerous? “Citizen Trump” reveals the strategy media figures and East/West Coast elites never comprehended.
“Trump loved the Citizen Kane film, and although he did not fully understand it, his life had many parallels, and it made for a worthy investigation,” Orlando reveals. “The hook for me was finding out - in light of the election - how parallel they were... Kane ends in tragedy after a spectacular rise and fall. Would Trump?”
Trump fans and foes alike can learn much from “the Trump way,” born in a showman’s way of looking at the big world stage.
Dubbed “the man at whose voice a nation trembled,” Kane creator Orson Welles very similarly shot to stardom as a young man and had several rises, falls and comebacks.
In both cases, it’s “the classic story of power and the press,” the leading men (Trump and Kane, aka Welles) use the media as a foil to grow their power and influence. And the more the media attacked, the more Trumpproved the adage that all publicity is good publicity (including the daily combative exchanges he relished in answering and returning).
Sounds familiar? The same word-for-word reactions fans/foes showered on “Citizen Kane” in 1941 echo (verbatim) the mantras thrown at Trump today: “I hate him! I love him! He’s a scoundrel! He’s a saint! He’s crazy! He’s a genius!” Then and now, the more the Establishment loathed Trump/Kane/Welles, the more the “forgotten Americans” who felt left behind loved him.
“Boundaries, the framing of a story - both are a perfect metaphor for Trump, the Showman,” Orlando says. “He promised to close the borders and secure our trade laws, to keep America a country by keeping the boundaries working. Stories similarly have clear starts, endings, and boundaries.”
Orlando is director of the Nexus Project and president of Nexus Media.
The new version of the film is available on Vimeo and Amazon Prime.
Buy or Rent Citizen Trump Now.
SYNOPSIS
Did you know Donald Trump's favorite film was Citizen Kane? And like Kane his success was largely a savvy media strategy?
In this new film, Citizen Trump, visionary Writer/Director Robert Orlando (A Polite Bribe, Silence Patton, The Divine Plan) digs below the political wars to expose Trump's epic pursuit to become America's leading man. Bigger than Bill Gates, Steve Jobs or Barack Obama. Orlando claims, Trump's rising star parallels Kane and was a decades long effort. From aspiring movie mogul, to darling of gossip columnists, to Reality TV star, in the end this was all a rehearsal for the greatest role of all as President of the United States.
An antihero who would stand up for the forgotten men, steer the country through a pandemic, a market crash, and fight for the American soul. An accomplishment that even his beloved Citizen Kane never realized. Orlando says "Trump knew from early on, he who controls the story controls the world."
PRESS
Citizen Trump: A Director’s Mea Culpa
'Trump knew from early on that he who controls the story controls the world'
THE WASHINGTON TIMES | SEPT 2020
THE FEDERALIST | SEPTMEBER 2020
Citizen Trump: An Exclusive Interview With the Filmmaker
THE AMERICAN SPECTATOR | SEPT 2020
Bob Woodward and “Citizen Trump”
Secretary Mattis and “Meditations” on Trump
Exploring Citizen Trump
Channeling William Randolph Hearst and “Citizen Kane” in a new film portrait of Donald Trump.
THE AMERICAN SPECTATOR | AUGUST 2020
On Robert Orlando’s “Citizen Trump”
How “Citizen Kane” Explains Donald Trump
Un nouveau genre de cinéma : Citizen Trump de Robert Orlando
DIRECTOR ROBERT ORLANDO
Photo: George Wieser
"COVID, civil unrest, a contentious presidential election — 2020 has been a banner year beyond comprehension. It is in this tumultuous environment and with great excitement that I introduce you to my new film Citizen Trump. I have been planning a film about the mercurial president in time for this year's election, but recent events — both personal and global — have made this project even more urgent and relevant.
In early spring, at the height of the COVID outbreak in New York City, severe bronchial issues stopped me in my tracks. I tested negative for the virus, but other family members did not. We weathered the storm physically, but I also was forced to temporarily close my company and put other projects on hold. As was the case for so many Americans, the imposed down time became a time of self-reflection.
Cooped up in my studio I revisited my favorite film, Citizen Kane. I have seen this classic dozens of times and even taught a course on it in film school. Now as I watched, I had an epiphany. The parallels between Charles Foster Kane and our current president astounded me. How had I not seen this before? Donald Trump — not as a for-or-against politician, but as a media persona — is a modern day, real-life Citizen Kane.
Even more intriguing, I discovered that Citizen Kane is actually Donald Trump’s favorite film. On close examination of the film, it seems apparent that Trump may have intentionally modeled his own life after the main character in Orson Welles' award-winning work. The implications galvanized my own research and set me on a path to get this new film completed pronto!
For me, the riddle of the Citizen Kane story was not only the traditional one about the sled “Rosebud” and its hidden secret of Kane’s life. For me, the real question became, if Trump’s life is indeed an echo of Kane — in wealth, media savvy and ambition — might he also be facing a similar tragic ending?...
...You'll have to watch the movie.
