Karla obtained a B.A. in Visual Arts from UC San Diego in 2016, becoming the first in her family to graduate college. She went on to obtain an M.F.A. in Directing from the the school of Theater, Film and Television at UCLA, where she received the full tuition Banky-Larocque scholarship sponsored by Donna Deitch.

Karla is the recipient of the Carl David Memorial Fellowship for her short Americano which premiered at Outfest LA, the Lynn Weston Fellowship for outstanding female directors for her film Parhelio, and The Four Sisters Scholarship in Screenwriting in support of her thesis screenplay, Chasing Lotus. She is also a two time Hispanic Scholarship Fund Scholar.

Her experiences as a queer, undocumented, masc-presenting woman of color inform her storytelling which aims to authentically capture the voices of marginalized people, promote social change and increase representation in the media. Some of her previous work delves into the Latin American diaspora, queer identities, migration, childhood trauma, and the experience of womanhood.

Karla has a special interest in creating anthology and multiplot films that, through interwoven and juxtaposed storylines, emphasize themes of identity and human connection, all told through a lens of realism and slice-of-life. Her background as an artist enriches her unique painterly style, inspiring her to push creative boundaries in visual storytelling through the use of color and composition.

She is currently based in Los Angeles, California where she lives with her wife and is developing her debut feature film, El Matiz del Colibrí.