Ayla is a screenwriter and director of Japanese-British heritage, born in Kyoto and raised in New Zealand. She studied Screenwriting and Directing at the South Seas Film and Television School. 

Her short film 4x4 premiered at the Academy Award–qualifying Cork International Film Festival, where it received a Special Mention for Best Direction. The film went on to win Best Cork Short at the Fastnet Film Festival and was nominated for the short screenplay award by the Writers' Guild of Ireland.

Her music video work has earned nominations for Best Music Video and Best Director at the Kinsale Sharks, and the NZ On Air Best Music Video award.

In recent years, she has been the recipient of several prestigious professional development initiatives. She was selected for the inaugural Element Pictures Storyhouse Screenwriting Lab, undertook a shadow directing placement with Element Pictures, and was twice chosen for the Screen Ireland X-Pollinator Scheme to develop her debut feature. Her mentors have included acclaimed filmmakers Aisling Walsh and Frank Berry, producer Chelsea Morgan Hoffman and screenwriter Ailbhe Keoghan. 

Her work is characterised by an atmospheric, visually striking aesthetic and a deeply humanistic approach to storytelling. Her work emphasises authenticity, emotional depth, and themes of identity and connection - often explored through the transformative moments of everyday life.