Did they do a lot of “on location” filming back in the ‘20s?
The 20s were the height of “on location” filming. Silent films used a lot of location shots because there was no need for sound.
Watch some Harold Lloyd movies. They were doing stunts on the tops of actual Los Angeles buildings. Cecil Be DeMille’s silent epics were far more interesting than his later films.
Another great silent film is the 1925 version of Ben Hur, which was made on location in Italy with a budget of more than $5 million in 1925 dollars.
Sound production set movie making back 15 years. They went from massive spectacle and real locations to static scenes filmed on sets.