The Artistic Ninja
Through my art, I seek to illuminate what is often left in the shadows, to challenge, to awaken, and to transform.
WELCOME TO MY WORLD...
Paula Andrea Cajiao
THE WORK
PLAYS
The Return Of The Rock
Originally developed from a monologue written during the Geffen Playhouse’s Beyond the Barracks program, this solo show received a staged reading at LAByrinth Theater Company’s 2025 Intensive in Los Angeles.
"The story follows my journey back to Machu Picchu to return a rock I once took. Through the voices of Indigenous women throughout Latin American history, the piece explores colonization, its lasting consequences, identity, and the search for reconciliation"
MAMA JULIA
MAMA JULIA
Set in 1950s El Cerrito, Colombia, Mama Julia follows a powerful matriarch whose faith, wealth, and control extend over her family, her land, and a town devastated by drought. When her son falls in love with a free-spirited circus performer, their relationship ignites a struggle between freedom and tradition. As the young woman confronts how much of herself she is willing to sacrifice for love and family, the matriarch begins to lose her grip on the world she has fought so fiercely to control.
Full Length
MY JOURNEY
FROM IMMIGRANT TO UNITED STATES ARMY COMBAT VETERAN TO AWARD-WINNING DIRECTOR
Paula Andrea Cajiao is a Colombian-American playwright, screenwriter, and award-winning director based in Los Angeles. Born in Cali, Colombia, she immigrated to the United States at sixteen and later served as a U.S. Army nurse during the Iraq War.
As a filmmaker, Paula has written and directed Señorita, Rosie, and Shell Shocked. The latter earned her the Excellence in Directing Award from New York Women in Film & Television and the SOHO International Film Festival, along with recognition from the GI Film Festival and Richmond International Film Festival. Her feature screenplay, Let There Be Light, has received recognition from several film festivals, including Atlanta, Big Apple, and Beverly Hills. She recently completed its proof-of-concept short, executive produced by Michael Jablow, with cinematography by Dennis Maloney.
In theater, Paula served as the writer's assistant to Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis during the development of Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven at Atlantic Theater Company. She also consulted with Liza Colón-Zayas on her portrayal of Sarge in the production. Her solo show, The Return of the Rock, originated at the Geffen Playhouse’s Beyond the Barracks program and later received a staged reading through the LAByrinth Theater Company Intensive in Los Angeles. Her newest play, Mama Julia, explores faith, power, womanhood, and freedom in 1950s Colombia.
Drawing from her Colombian heritage, immigrant experience, and military service, Paula creates stories that explore identity, healing, injustice, and the human struggle for freedom.
THE ARTISTIC NINJA
