Born Carlotta Provin in Vicenza, as a child De Santis won a beauty contest and at young age she started working for the advertising industry and on stage. She made her film debut in 1954 in the melodrama Lacrime d'amore directed by Pino Mercanti, who suggested her stage name. She was very active in adventure films, Spaghetti Westerns, peplum and Eurospy films, sometimes credited as Dina De Saint