Asia Argento, of a veritable dynasty of Italian actors and filmmakers, is a beautiful, brilliant actress in such films as Zoo (1989); some of her father Dario's films such as Trauma (1993) and the Romanticist Phantom of the Opera (1998); and as a director she was at the helm of Scarlet Diva (2000), The Heart is Deceitful Among All Things (2004) and others. She's also a successful novelist and short story writer.

She has a chihuahua named Dziga, after Russian film director of the silent film era, Dziga Vertov. Of her dog she says, "He taught me how to open up. Before him, I never took care of anybody but myself. This little rat needs me to eat, to pee...he needs me for everything. Taking him on was really important. I got him right after I finished Scarlet Diva."

The color portrait of Dziga is by the late Kamil Salah. Below is a photo of Asia kissing a rotweiller from the film Go Go Tales (2007).