Karen Tan

When Karen Tan went to look at a derelict cinema on the fifth floor of a forgotten 1970s building on Beach Road, she knew right away that the space had potential: she had an idea to spruce it up and turn it into an independent cinema of the edgy arthouse (i.e. shoestring budget) variety.

Since it opened in December 2014, The Projector - two theatres carved from the vertically-stacked grand circle of the former Golden Cinema - has become the venue of choice for movie buffs and creative minds.

As it turned out, Ms Tan, 36, who studied architecture in Melbourne before graduating from the London School of…