Terry Gross

Her new film Stander is based on the true story of Andre Stander, a young white policeman in Johannesburg, South Africa, who in the 1970s became a notorious bank robber.

Journalist Jon Cohen recently finished a four-part series on HIV and AIDS in Asia for the Science Magazine. In researching the series, he traveled to six countries and talked to doctors, patients, public health officials, sex workers and drug users. Cohen has been writing about the AIDS epidemic for 15 years. His book on the search for a vaccine is called Shots in the Dark.

Filmmakers Chris Kentis and Laura Lau talk about their new film Open Water. The movie is based on the true story of an Australian couple who went scuba diving and then were left stranded by their charter boat. The low-budget film was shot on hand-held digital cameras, without a crew, and with real sharks. In fact the filmmakers placed the two actors in the water along with the sharks, with the help of a shark handler.