CANNES, France - Jennifer Saunders finds herself on planet Strange.

At the Cannes airport, for instance, as she arrived from London to promote her first American film, Shrek 2, she was greeted by a porter, security guard and representative from the studio.

The problem was that she had no luggage for the porter, no entourage for the rep and no screaming fans for the bodyguard to hold back.

She was ready to hail a cab to her hotel until she was whisked away by her "detail" into a chauffeured car.

"I pretended that the airline had lost my entourage," she said over coffee in a cabana overlooking the French Riviera at the celebrated Hotel du Cap.

Then with a sigh, she added, "This is a parallel universe." Welcome to Hollywood in the French Riviera.

DreamWorks' long awaited animated sequel, Shrek 2, premièred at Cannes on Saturday and in the United States this week, and the studio is pulling out all the stops. The entire cast of Shrek 2 and their entourages were put up at the Hotel du Cap.

The studio also hosted a big party in a rented castle after the Cannes première. Its stint at the film festival is likely to cost DreamWorks more than $3 million.

But back to Saunders' cabana at the Hotel du Cap, where two large men in black suits, dark sunglasses and earpieces stand guard. ("The place is littered with these men," she whispered.)

Saunders, a British actress known in America mainly for her role as Edina Monsoon in the television sitcom Absolutely Fabulous, plays the (wicked) fairy godmother in Shrek 2. She is admittedly not great at the gigantic marketing and publicity game Hollywood plays.

If you expect Saunders to be anything like Edina, a neurotic, somewhat insecure public relations maven, you will be disappointed.

"I think sometimes the public expects something else - something larger than life," she said. First of all, she is not a mousy brunette wearing strange baggy clothes. She is an attractive blonde with blue eyes, a tan and a nice smile.

She is, however, press shy and loathes to talk about herself. She says she is not a particularly ambitious actress.

She declined to take part in the U.S. promotion of the film, saying the cross-country tour - from New York to Chicago to Los Angeles - was simply too long and it conflicted with her television schedule in London.

Saunders has spent three days talking about herself and the film to hundreds of members of the media from around the globe. For two six-hour days, she was interviewed by more than 100 journalists. Granted, each interview lasted five minutes. Still, it was exhausting.

In any case, Cannes has been an educational experience for Saunders. She has sunned at the hotel, eaten extraordinary dinners and, best of all, met the entire cast of Shrek 2 at dinner. Because she recorded her voiceovers in a studio in London, she says, it was pretty isolating work. At the dinner, Antonio Banderas, who plays the cowardly, sweet-talking Puss-in-Boots, made sure everyone met Saunders.

"I met Julie Andrews!" she practically squealed. "I couldn't believe it! There she was talking to me."

Shrek 2 may bring her more offers from America. Don't count on her to say yes.

"It would depend on how long I would have to be away," she said.