Karla Jean Davis
- Director
- Editor
- Writer
Karla Jean Davis grew up in Lynchburg, Virginia, the youngest of five girls. Karla's family encouraged her early interest in writing and drawing. When a fifth grade teacher took notice of her stories, Karla began reading them aloud to entertain her class before recess. One such story, "The Magic Carpet," was adapted to a play that her classmates performed for the entire fifth grade. This was a landmark for Karla, who was ordinarily quite shy around peers.
As a young girl, Karla spent most of her time at the library or at home
drawing unicorns, writing short stories, and watching old cartoons (she
especially liked those of Max Fleischer and the Disney animated
features of the 90s). She often performed in musicals and plays at her
parent's church. After seeing "Edward Scissorhands" in the sixth grade,
Karla quickly announced it to be tied with "Bill & Ted's Excellent
Adventure" as her favorite movie of all-time.
Karla attended Brookville High School, where she wrote for the yearbook
and learned photography. In 1998 before hear senior year, she
moved with her parents to Georgia and entered a new high school. There, she presided over the drama club and
acted in musicals.
Spurred on by a love for music and the moving image, Karla enrolled in Watkins College (Nashville, Tennessee) as a screenwriting/directing major with the intention of making music videos locally. But in the process she fell in love with narrative film, and she soon transferred to back to GSU in Atlanta, completing her film degree in 2004. Her undergrad shorts included "Nosferatu: The Friendly Vampire" and "Holiday Roman."
After graduation, she directed several short films. In 2005, she
completed a feature-length documentary about fans of the late
singer/songwriter Elliott Smith, which included their reactions to his
apparent suicide (in October of 2003).
Karla's narrative work caught the eye of producers Mark Burnett and
Steven Spielberg, who selected her from 12,000 worldwide entrants to
compete in the top 50 semi-finalists for the short-lived reality show
"On The Lot" (2007).
Karla began work on her first feature-length film in 2006, a nod to the
silent era which she wrote, produced, costumed, and directed. It premiered in Atlanta at The Plaza Theater in 2008.
As a young girl, Karla spent most of her time at the library or at home
drawing unicorns, writing short stories, and watching old cartoons (she
especially liked those of Max Fleischer and the Disney animated
features of the 90s). She often performed in musicals and plays at her
parent's church. After seeing "Edward Scissorhands" in the sixth grade,
Karla quickly announced it to be tied with "Bill & Ted's Excellent
Adventure" as her favorite movie of all-time.
Karla attended Brookville High School, where she wrote for the yearbook
and learned photography. In 1998 before hear senior year, she
moved with her parents to Georgia and entered a new high school. There, she presided over the drama club and
acted in musicals.
Spurred on by a love for music and the moving image, Karla enrolled in Watkins College (Nashville, Tennessee) as a screenwriting/directing major with the intention of making music videos locally. But in the process she fell in love with narrative film, and she soon transferred to back to GSU in Atlanta, completing her film degree in 2004. Her undergrad shorts included "Nosferatu: The Friendly Vampire" and "Holiday Roman."
After graduation, she directed several short films. In 2005, she
completed a feature-length documentary about fans of the late
singer/songwriter Elliott Smith, which included their reactions to his
apparent suicide (in October of 2003).
Karla's narrative work caught the eye of producers Mark Burnett and
Steven Spielberg, who selected her from 12,000 worldwide entrants to
compete in the top 50 semi-finalists for the short-lived reality show
"On The Lot" (2007).
Karla began work on her first feature-length film in 2006, a nod to the
silent era which she wrote, produced, costumed, and directed. It premiered in Atlanta at The Plaza Theater in 2008.