**Paola Guidi** (1951) is an Italian actress known for her distinctive presence in auteur cinema, particularly that of Pupi Avati. Her career is inextricably linked to the Bolognese director, who discovered and launched her.

She debuted in 1970 with *Balsamus, l'uomo di Satana*, a film that immediately defined her as an enigmatic and captivating actress. She played roles of women who were often fragile, melancholic, or mysterious, endowed with a subtle aura of unease or dreamy fatalism.

Among her most significant collaborations with Avati are *La mazurka del barone, della santa e del fico fiorone* (1975), *Tutti defunti... tranne i morti* (1977), and *Le strelle nel fosso* (1979). Guidi became a sort of muse for Avati, embodying key characters in his narrative universe, often set in provincial and surreal contexts.