"Aferim!" is an Ottoman Turkish expression meaning "Bravo!".
19th-century Wallachia was heavily influenced by the Ottoman Empire, and the word "aferim" is Turkish for "bravo". Director Radu Jude said in the N.Y. Times (Sept. 8, 2015) that the word appears often in historical documents and therefore came to be part of the story, adding a touch of irony: "The characters in the film say 'Aferim!' to each other as they feel they are doing the right thing," he said. "It is very symbolic, this aspect."
The story is fictional, but director Radu Jude said in the NY Times (Sept. 8, 2015) that he drew on the historical record. Before shooting began, he held a script reading with 20 historians and made adjustments in response to their input.
Aferim! (2015) is only the second Romanian film to address the Roma slavery, which existed in Wallachia for almost 500 years until 1856. The first one was the silent film Gypsy Girl in the Bedroom (1923). It has apparently been lost, with only a few stills surviving. Very little is known about it.
Shot in only 23 days.