Deborra-Lee Furness put acting on hold for five years to take care of her kids.
So now she finds it a blessing that the film marking her professional return has brought her to the world's biggest film festival.
Furness stars alongside Laura Linney and Gabriel Byrne in Jindabyne, which is set to have its world premiere as part of Cannes' highly regarded Directors Fortnight program.
"I feel pretty damn blessed," Furness said after seeing the film for the first time.
"This is the first film I have done since my son was born and how nice that it ends up in Cannes. I couldn't be more thrilled."
Her actor husband Hugh Jackman is by her side, and on Tuesday night they attended the world premiere of his new action flick, X-Men: The Last Stand.
Despite the glamour of the Cannes annual film event, Furness insists her family has a normal life.
"Life is fantastic, he (Jackman) is the love of my life," said the 45-year-old.
"We are just a family going along. When we go to do the red carpet, it is the job, like going to Disneyland for the day. It is not really our life. We are at home changing diapers and going to the supermarket."
Leah Purcell and John Howard also star in Jindabyne, which was shot in Australia's Snowy Mountains and is the film adaptation of Raymond Carver's novel So Much Water So Close To Home.
The film tells the story of a small community confronted by a murder.
It is the first time Furness has been cast as a grandmother, something she found confronting.
"The truth is, it was frightening," she said.
"It is set in the country - they marry young. You can have 40-year-old grandmothers there."
Furness has been a regular on Australian TV and film since the 1970s, with roles on TV shows such as Prisoner, The Flying Doctors, Neighbours, Halifax f.p. and Seachange, as well as films Stark and Angel Baby.
"To be an actor is a single person's game with logistics," she said when asked if Jindabyne was a sign she would be working more.
"It is all about balance. Family always comes first but part of me is the actor so if I don't let that live I am letting my kids down as well anyway."
Furness and Jackman don't really have a base - they shuttle between New York, Los Angeles, London and Sydney.
With their first-born son, Oscar, now six, she said it was time to set up a more permanent home, which is likely to be in New York.
"We are literally nomadic actors," she said.
"We have lived on location pretty much for the past eight years. We are hoping to establish a home but we haven't as yet.
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