Ponyo Elements of Animation

Appeal (0:31)

The characters, especially Ponyo and Sōsuke, are given large eyes, small noses, and rounded faces. They're designed to be very cute and childlike, as many of the Ghibli movies are about the innocence of childhood.

Anticipation (1:54)

In this shot, Fujimoto makes an expressive motion with his arms as he tries to contain Ponyo in her water bubble. He pulls in his arms then lurches forward to cover her with his hands.

Secondary Action (2:13)

As Fujimoto flies around underwater, the flowing motion of his hair adds a lot of secondary animation details that really bring the character to life.