Location filming in the city of Los Angeles dropped 14.3 percent for the third quarter, compared with the year-ago quarter, according to Film L.A.

The nonprofit organization, which coordinates permits for filmed entertainment shot on location in the city, recorded 9,680 permitted production days for the quarter, compared with 11,300 for the 2008 period.

Film L.A. president Paul Audley said the decline confirms the need for the package of incentives passed recently by the Los Angeles City Council. “We appreciate these efforts,” he said.

On the bright side, feature film production rose 25.5 percent for the quarter (1,485 vs. 1,183 permitted days), the first time the category has not suffered double-digit losses in five straight quarters.

However, the comparison is to last year’s unusual schedule, as studios rushed films into production to finish them before the expiration of the Screen Actors Guild’s film and TV contract.

Feature production days are down 37.4 percent year-to-date.

The commercials category, which had seen four straight quarters of double-digit losses, rose 10.2 percent for the third quarter compared with Q3 2008 (1,215 vs. 1,103 days). Production days for commercials still are down 21.4 percent year-to-date, due in large part to the decline in advertising spending.

Television production days were off 21.4 percent for the quarter compared with Q3 2008 (4,432 vs. 5,638) and down 11.0 percent year-to-date.

In the TV subcategories, dramas were down 6.8 percent (2,136 vs. 2,292), sitcoms were down 47.7 percent (246 vs. 470, reality was down 20.1 percent (1,226 vs. 1,535) and pilots were down 25.8 percent (112 vs. 151 PPD).