In 2007, 26-year-old Chicago real estate agent (and president of the Jefferson Park Historical Society) John Maloof walked into an auction house and placed a $380 bid on a box of 30,000 prints and negatives from an unknown photographer.

Realizing the street photographs of 1950s/60s Chicago and New York were of unusually high quality, he purchased another lot of photographer’s work totaling some 100,000 photographic negatives, thousands of prints, 700 rolls of undeveloped color film, home movies, audio tape interviews, and original cameras.

Over time, it became clear the photos belonged to a Chicago nanny named Vivian Maier, who had photographed prolifically for nearly 40 years but never shared her work during her lifetime. Since the discovery, Maier’s photographs have received international attention, with collections touring in cities around the world and a book published.

Now, a documentary called Finding Vivian Maier directed by Maloof and Charlie Siskel is nearing completion. The trailer is a tantalizing preview of what promises me a fascinating film. Can’t wait.