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Robert Nelson Jacobs

Robert Nelson Jacobs

Writer · Born February 24, 1954 (72) · Pennsylvania, USA

Robert Nelson Jacobs is an American screenwriter. In 2000, he received an Academy Award nomination for best adapted screenplay for Chocolat. In 2014, Jacobs was elected president of the Writers Guild Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to promoting and preserving the craft of writing for the screen. He attended Yale University, where he received the Curtis Literary Prize for his short fiction and graduated with honors. He earned his master's degree from the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Jacobs began his career as a writer of short stories that were published in little, prestigious magazines that generated little, prestigious income. Jacobs' love of movies brought him to California, where it took a number of years for his work to finally start paying the rent. Jacobs' screenplay credits include Out to Sea, Dinosaur, Chocolat, The Shipping News, Flushed Away, The Water Horse, and Extraordinary Measures.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
February 24, 1954 (72)
From
Pennsylvania, USA
Works as
Writer
Titles
7 on Motif · 8 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Down 22% in 30 days

What are Robert Nelson Jacobs' films like?

Across their 7 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Society.

Genres

Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 65th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Animation2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 62nd percentile
: browse their Animation movies

Their Motif films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
48%
Society
21%
Survival
16%
Ideas
8%
Self
4%
Power
3%
Family bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief2 titles, browse their movies with this themeHope2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 7 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 4 · Serious 1 · Dark 2

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 4 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 2

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 4 · Charged 3 · Intense 0

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 4 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 0

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 2

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 1

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 7 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 7 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Hopeful
4
Warm
4
Joyful
2
Tense
2
Melancholic
2
Other
7

How their films linger

Hopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy3
  • Bittersweet4

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Robert Nelson Jacobs' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 7 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Disney+ (2).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Robert Nelson Jacobs' titles on Motif; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

8 credits, 7 with a Motif page.

  • Extraordinary Measures(2010)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films

  • The Water Horse(2007)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films

  • Flushed Away(2006)

    Additional Writing · Writer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • The Shipping News(2001)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Chocolat(2000)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • Dinosaur(2000)

    Screenplay · Story

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • Out to Sea(1997)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Encore (not in the Motif catalog yet)

    Writer

Career shape

A full career of 8 titles, 7 of them dated from 1997 to 2010.

Biggest box office

Dinosaur (2000)

$350M worldwide

Highest rated

Chocolat (2000)

Midcredits 86th

Most popular right now

Dinosaur (2000)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Writing7 of 8: 7 only writing, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score60thOther crew1 of 8: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1990s1 · crew2000s5 · crew2010s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on Motif, shown from 5 scored.

How do Robert Nelson Jacobs' films land?

Their typical Motif film has a Midcredits score in the 62nd percentile, the median of all 7; across their 7 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 58th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

58thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Approval · how many liked their films

58thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Reach · how many have seen their films

95thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Midcredits score across 7 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up1
  • 50th to 74th5
  • 25th to 49th1

Shape of the crowd

None of their 7 titles divides audiences: 6 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed1

Most loved · writer

Chocolat (2000)

Midcredits 86th · 78% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 50/100 and the plot and story 44/100 in their films, across 7 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their Motif titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Robert Nelson Jacobs' work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 Motif titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Violence & Gore4 titlesmedian 35 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 16 · mildMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 16 · mildMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs4 titlesmedian 28 · mildMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense4 titlesmedian 34 · mildMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Robert Nelson Jacobs work with?

People who share at least 2 of Robert Nelson Jacobs' Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Lasse Hallström shares the most, 2.

Directors

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers