Miramax grabs 21 Oscar nods

NEW YORK, Jan. 22 (UPI) -- Movies made by Miramax Films earned 21 Oscar nods when nominations were announced Tuesday in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The company received nominations eight apiece for "No Country for Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood," both of which were co-productions with Paramount Vantage, as well as four for "The Diving Bell and The Butterfly" and one for "Gone Baby Gone."

"I am so thrilled that Miramax's faith in these extraordinary filmmakers and their ambitious work has been rewarded by the academy," Daniel Battsek, the company's president said in a statement.

"We are very happy to have received these nominations and would like to thank the academy and all of our friends and associates with whom we made this film," said "No Country for Old Men" writer-director nominees Ethan and Joel Coen.

Julian Schnabel, director of "The Diving Bell and The Butterfly," called it "a great honor."

"I am extremely happy for Juliette Welfling, Janusz Kaminski and Ronald Harwood for their nominations," Schnabel said. "It's hard to believe that this foreign language film received four big nominations for director, editing, cinematography and screenplay -- that in itself is a huge win for us."