Marion Pilowsky, former head of international production for Myriad Pictures, and Colin Leventhal, a consultant to tax-based financier Grosvenor Park, have teamed to form UK production company Priority Pictures.

The company's first film will be Three Bad Men, based on a script by Peter Straughan and to be directed by Paul Weiland (City Slickers 2, Rosanna's Grave). Starting principal photography this autumn, the black comedy tells the story of three hit men on the run who decide to change their lives.

Joining Pilowsky and Leventhal at Priority will be production manager Neil Chordia and, in a part-time role, Trea Hoving, who will advise on development and production.

The company aims to produce UK feature films for the international market place in the $7m - $20m budget range. Pilowsky and Leventhal (pictured together) collaborated recently on a series of Myriad titles which were co-financed by Grosvenor Park.

"I've worked with Colin on over ten feature films during the past eight years and have always felt we could create a successful and commercial film production business," Pilowsky said.

Pilowsky, who also served as vice president of international acquisitions and development at UIP, recently executive produced Being Julia, Trauma and Piccadilly Jim and produced The River King. Leventhal, previously a senior executive at Channel 4's former film operation and a co-founder (along with Hoving and David Aukin) of the Miramax Films-backed HAL Films, will continue to work as a consultant and executive producer for Grosvenor Park.

"We have put together a terrific team with enormous experience of the international marketplace to give a new and different impetus to the development and production of UK films seeking worldwide distribution," Leventhal said.