The article discusses the film theory outlined by the Russian linguist in three contributions: the essay ‘Is the Film in Decline?’ (1933); an interview about cinema from 1967; and a number of comments to be found in his writings. Roman Jakobson's hypothesis consists in the transposition of literary features to cinematographic means, until reaching what the Russian formalists came to call the “Poetics of Cinema” (“Poėtika Kino”). An overview of the relations that Jakobson maintained with the poets and painters of the Czech and Russian Avant-Garde, his attitude in film matters (movies, filmmakers), and the theoretical references that dealt with film questions are some of the themes discussed with the aim to contextualize the vision that Jakobson had of the cinematographic medium.