By LOUIS B. HOBSON --

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Sultry Cameron Diaz has been keeping a low profile since she vamped her way into Jim Carrey and moviegoers' hearts in The Mask.

She has three independent movies coming out before the end of the year.

First up is She's The One for Edward Burns, who produced, directed and starred in last year's independent hit, The Brothers McMullen.

Then there's Feeling Minnesota, in which she has Keanu Reeves and Vincent D'Ofrino feuding for her affections. In Head Above Water, she plays Harvey Keitel's wife.

Diaz tried to share some light on why Carrey would search out a $20-million pay day for The Cable Guy whereas Reeves would run away from an $11-million offer to star in Speed 2.

"Jim's fan base is 14-year-old boys who ador and want to emulate him. He thinks that's cool for himself and for them. The money is this incredible bonus for having fun."

Keanu's fan base is screaming, fainting 14-year-old girls. He's mortified by the attention.

"Every morning, there'd be dozens of little girls behind barriers across the street hoping to catch a glimpse of him coming to Feeling Minnesota.

"Vincent would lead them in a cheer - `Give me a K, give me and E,' and so on. He delighted in torturing poor Keanu but you could see it really was torture for him."

Diaz is currently filming My Best Friend's Wedding with Julia Roberts and Dermott Mulroney.

"I've never seen a set where there is such tight security. No one gets on unless they have proper credentials and credentials are scrutinized," says Diaz.

"People are worried about Julia's safety. She doesn't talk about the toll celebrity has taken on her life but she's become a bird in a gilded cage. It looks like the best of possible environments but it's really a prison."

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