Some 1,500 South Korean movie producers, actors and directors participated in a protest rally near the U.S. embassy in Seoul today (Wednesday), carrying a banner reading "Stop humiliating negotiations that will allow a cultural invasion." The protesters were opposing trade negotiations with the U.S. that would ease South Korea's restrictions on the number of Hollywood films that can be shown in the country. South Korean officials have indicated that they were willing to increase the number of Hollywood films that can be shown in the country because locally produced films have proved to be so successful both artistically and commercially in recent years. They pointed out that of the top ten hits in South Korea in 2005, seven were produced locally. No U.S. film, they observed, made the top five.