Joe Vaz was born on the 29th of July 1972 at Park Lane Clinic in Johannesburg. He attended Tshwane University of Technology (formerly Technikon Pretoria) from 1991 to 1994 wherein he studied Drama and Light Music, minoring in singing under the tuition of Estelle Kokot. As a student Joe starred in numerous productions, among them Sweet Charity, Teahouse of the August Moon, The Cage Birds, Fool for Love (play), Arsenic and Old Lace, The Fantasticks, and a student production of John Hughes' The Breakfast Club which Joe adapted for the stage. He attended the Grahamstown Festival as a member of Ian Fraser's Comedy Shop while also starring in Damon Berry's one-act play, Corpser. Joe began his professional career in 1994 in musical theatre as an Ishmealite in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. This was followed by the Christmas Panto Aladdin. 1995 began with California Dreamin' - a tribute to the Beach Boys and The Mammas and the Pappas, and was followed by a two-year stint as the voice and puppeteer of the ever-popular donkey Chinwag on the award -winning children's television show Kideo (TV Series). During the next 5 years Joe featured in numerous musical theatre productions including Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story, La Cage Aux Folles as well as an appearing in numerous local and international commercials and a brief appearance in Egoli. in 2000 Joe returned to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoatto play Jacob and Potiphar. Later that same year he relocated to London where he worked as an usher in The Apollo Theatre Shaftesbury for three years. During this time he starred in The Way of the World at the Pentameters Theatre in Hampstead and worked on a couple of student films. In 2004 Joe returned to Johannesburg and branched out into writing and directing. He wrote and directed his first short film Play By Heart in June of that year starring Jose Domingos, Daniel Janks, Caryn Davidoff and Dianne Simpson. This was followed by Blue Valentine in October of the same year, starring Jonathan Pienaar and Dawn Matthews.

Runs his own micro-budget production company Inkless Media and has written and directed several short films, most notable being Play By Heart (2005), Blue Valentine (2005) and Beyond Words (2006).