Maggie Ross ’07 was relieved to find a box of frozen “fish fingers” at a supermarket in Budapest. But in an unrehearsed moment of her Capstone documentary “Life Abroad,” her happiness quickly turns to frustration as she realizes the cooking instructions are in Hungarian.

That’s just one of the many moments of culture shock in the Communication major’s polished 35-minute film, which will be screened at 7 p.m. April 27 in Decker Auditorium, located in Lewis Hall of Science. The event is free and open to the public.

While studying at McDaniel’s Budapest campus last fall, Ross collected 17 hours of footage on her Sony Handycam Mini DV. Upon her return, she spent 150 hours editing the documentary.

“Everyone had cameras, and it was hard because I wanted to blend in,” says Ross. “So I learned to hold the camera so nobody notices.”

Roommates in Budapest Allison Dower ’07 and Alaina Willing ’08 helped by filming some of Ross’ video-diary segments, which are interspersed throughout the documentary.

“It will be hard to have people watch because it’s very personal,” Ross says of the video diaries, which document the highs and lows of her trip. “But I felt it was really important, especially for people who are thinking of going abroad and going into this program.”

While abroad, Ross toured Austria and Amsterdam – and delighted in the rich ice cream in Rome. But she also saw protests over a Hungarian elections incident.

“It was a whirlwind and strange to think about now,” she says. “But it was amazing to be able to live in another culture. You learn so much about yourself and how you adjust to things.”