In movies, she had starring roles in A sablazo limpio (1958), Viva la parranda (1960), Las hijas del Amapolo (1962), and Escuela para solteras (1965).
Carmela finished her primary and secondary school in Mexico City, and learned solfège, harmony, history of music, and Italian at the Conservatorio Nacional de Música.
[2] Rey began her career participating in recitals at Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes, but she married and went abroad to live with her husband.
[2] She made a comeback singing in her own radio programs and performing at the posh Capri nightclub in Mexico City.
[2] Her great beauty and natural charm attracted the attention of film producers Óscar J. Brooks and Ernesto Enríquez,[2] who signed her for the female lead opposite Viruta y Capulina and Chilean bolero singer Lucho Gatica in A sablazo limpio (1958), a comedy set in the Spanish empire of the 18th century.