Betty E. Box

This younger sister of screenwriter-producer Sydney Box was a pioneer in the British film industry. Born in Beckenham, Kent, Betty E Box entertained thoughts of a career as a commercial artist but recognized she lacked the requisite talent. Secretarial courses proved equally uninspiring. By the late 1930s, her brother Sydney and his second wife Muriel had begun to produce films and they offered her a slot at their Verity Films. Box proved a natural at maintaining costs to a minimum and keeping a sharp eye on the bottom line. At a time when the role of women in film was mostly relegated to before the camera work, Betty Box excelled in packaging and overseeing the making of features. After a promotion to production manager, she eventually made the leap to producing, serving as an associate on "The Seventh Veil" (1945).