When style meets Hollywood

Designer Holly Houndstooth relaxes in the space she designed at Starlight Cinema.

Taupō’s new Starlight Cinema and has hit the stars with a double showing at two national design awards. 

By Dan Hutchinson 

Turning a vet clinic into a labour of love, owners Tammy and Charlie Prince commissioned interior designer Holly Houndstooth to imagine the visual transformation – inside and out. 

Earlier this year the project was a finalist in two categories at the New Zealand Interior Awards – Civic and Colour. 

Holly says, although they didn't take top spot, to have a small studio in Taupō and a local cinema recognised alongside some of New Zealand's leading designs was a huge achievement. 

This month, the project was named finalists in three categories at the Best Design Awards, taking second place in the Colour category and third place in the Repurposed Spaces category. 

Holly says it is “pretty surreal” to be included, given the scale and calibre of the projects and design firms we're up against nationally. 

“What makes it even more special is that this isn't some huge new development in Auckland or Wellington. It's our very own Starlight Cinema”.