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Born in San Salvador, El Salvador, Carla Vila spent most of her childhood and early teenage years in Florida. Carla demonstrated special interest in the arts at a very early age. She would often be seen performing in plays, as well as ballet, dance and piano recitals.
Carla attended Suwannee High School and maintained academic excellence. Her first modeling job was at the age of 16 for an ad campaign for Toyota in San Salvador. She went on to earn a bachelor's degree in Architecture at the Albert Einstein University.
In 2002, Carla relocated to Paris where she studied drama at the University of Paris III: Sorbonne Nouvelle. She trained with fine American coaches like Bob McAndrew and Bernard Hiller (Cameron Diaz's coach), to name a few. Within a couple of years, Carla appeared in such notable theater productions as "Bref! Soyons brefs..." and "Derniere repetition". In film, she starred in "Alea" (2004), short film winner of 10 national prizes in France. She followed up with an impressive performance as the Colombian junkie Carolina in "Blanc" (2004), a supernatural film about a group of strangers facing death; and later, as a cold hearted murderer in the pulp short film "I Want You" (2004) by Aurelien Manya.
Since her arrival in Hollywood in 2005, Carla's career has ranged from notorious commercials to fetching roles in films like the Spanish comedy "Chencho" (2006). She has since gained attention by appearing in popular TV shows like "ER" (2009), "90210" (2009) "Southland" (2011), "Grey's Anatomy" (2011) and "Days Of Our Lives" (2013).
In 2015, Carla joined the Season Two cast of the HBO critically acclaimed drama series "True Detective" (2015) and worked closely with Oscar Nominee, Rachel McAdams. She was later cast as Deputy Green in the Golden Globe and Emmy winning television series "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story" (2016). Most recently, her recurring role in the award winning comedy series "Jane The Virgin" (2017) has revealed her versatile nature. Carla continues to work in highly regarded television series including "Famous In Love" (2017), "Atypical" (2017) and "Animal Kingdom" (2017) alongside Scott Speedman.
To date, Carla has been involved in over 20 film productions and has guest starred in numerous television shows. With her popularity rising, Carla has been featured in spreads for magazines such as ELLA Magazine, Mujeres El Salvador Magazine and Peacemaker Magazine. She has booked for runway and ad campaigns for major brands like Glaudi, Babylone Paris, Levi's, McDonald's, Intel, Wells Fargo, Jack in the Box and Little Debbie, to name a few. It’s probably no surprise that Carla’s trendy style has caught the attention of the fashion world, earning her a spot as a model in high fashion photo shoots and as a valued guest at couture events.
Carla’s approach to acting has been consistent: “To connect to a character, I work first on finding the emotional life and build from there.” She adds, “All arts connect and inform each other. It is important to remain inspired. See theater, dance, music, and visual art; read great books, travel, struggle, get a hobby, study, volunteer—gain perspective. This may indirectly benefit your work and your life, as well."
Carla currently resides in Los Angeles yet remains extremely close with her family and visits them often in San Salvador.