This essay discusses the author's use of Charles Dickens's "Sketches by Boz" (1836-39) in an undergraduate Victorian literature and film class as a further way of expanding the possibilities for teaching film with literature. The article begins with a general discussion of Dickens's overall value to author Jeffrey Jackson's idea of the Victorian literature and film class, giving particular attention to "Sketches by Boz". From there, Jackson stresses "Sketches"'s status as an illustrated book that frequently expresses a visual methodology, one arguably prophetic of the cinematic camera. The next section of the article details how Jackson's class read "Sketches" while viewing key examples of early film to explore a process he describes as "fumbling toward narrative." Jackson then ends that section by discussing how he sees "Sketches by Boz" as a transition from the class's first novel, "Oliver Twist" (1837-39). Jackson concludes by suggesting how starting with "Sketches" ultimately allows him to challenge the idea of narrative itself while positing pre-narrative cinema as a road-not-taken.