MerMay is quite a popular art challenge in May, almost as trendy as Inktober. The premise is to draw (or make art of, which is not limited to drawing) merfolk or water creatures during the whole month.
You could create original characters or fan-art… But what media feature (fantasy) water creatures? Here’s part 2 of my “merfolk & water creatures in media” series, started with literature (books & comics), and now continuing with movies and tv shows.
Ps. This list only includes films I’ve watched or heard about myself. There are many, many more than that.
Count/Order:
- Barbie movies: 6
- Animations from known studios: 9
- Animes: 10
- Other animations: 12
- No fantasy creatures: 13
- Live action: 6
(The links are anchor links and will lead you directly to the paragraphs.)
Barbie Movies
A Mermaid Tale 1 & 2
Merliah finds out she’s the Queen’s daughter of the underwater kingdom. Through a magical necklace, she can transform into a mermaid, when visiting the ocean, and back human, when she’s on land. In both movies she has to stop an evil sorceress, who wants to take over the kingdom.
What I really like about this Barbie’s mermaid world is the designs of their tails. So unique to each character and really beautiful!
Fairytopia: Mermaidia
Fairytopia is a trilogy about fairies, but in the 2nd movie, Barbie’s character (Elina) has to transform into a mermaid, to find Prince Nalu, the prince of the mermaid kingdom. Together with Nori, a mermaid, they have to solve tasks and find a way to put their differences aside.
The pearl princess
Lumina has the power to control pearls. She lives together with her aunt, hidden from the outside world.
(Kind of the underwater version of Rapunzel, except the aunt isn’t evil.)
Dolphin Magic & Mermaid Power
Dolphin Magic: Barbie and her sisters help a mermaid (Isla) to get her dolphin friends, who have been captured, back.
Technically a stand-alone movie, but if you liked it, they’ve made a sequel:
Mermaid Power: Barbie and her friends are called by Isla to help save Pacifica. They all transform into mermaids and discover their powers.
I haven’t seen the sequel yet, but I do love the different skin color representations!
Animated movies/shows from known studios:
The little Mermaid (Disney)
Ariel, the most classical mermaid.
3 movies and a tv show. (A CG tv show, inspired by the Live Action remake, will also premiere in 2024.)
I’ve once drawn my OC, Arely, together with Gabriella, a character from the tv show.
Luca (Pixar)
Luca, a young sea monster, finds out he transforms into human when he’s dry. Together with another sea monster, who’s been living on land for a bit, they discover human things, visit a human town, partake in a human event with bicycles, all the while trying to hide their real form.
I’ve transformed my own character into a sea monster in MerMay 2022: Meet Ami (Italian accent).
Ponyo (Ghibli)
A sea goddess and a male human have kids – hybrid-fishes. One of them wants to live among humans, though the journey is not as easy as they might’ve thought.
Teenage Kraken (DreamWorks)
Mermaids and Krakens both have evolved to live among humans. But they are sworn enemies and Ruby Gillman, a teenage kraken, finds it out the hard way.
A cool family movie, but personally I’d love to have seen more of the mermaids. The Kraken’s were awesome, though!
H2O Mermaid Adventures (ZDF)
Animated version of H2O Just Add Water, but focuses more on the underwater world. The art style is anime-like, with their hair and tails being more colorful, and they now can talk underwater and with sea animals.
Less teenage drama, and more underwater adventures, centered around helping animals.
I’ve drawn my own character, Arely, but also Anna (Frozen), Cassandra (Tangled), and Everfree (MLP) into the show.
Song of the Sea
Two siblings, who can transform into seals, set off on a quest to liberate the fairies and protect the spirit from the forces of evil. (Based on Irish mythology.)
Spongebob
The underwater misadventures of a talking sponge, working at a fast-food restaurant.
Finding Nemo/Dory (Pixar)
- In the first movie, Finding Nemo (2003), a clown fish’s son has been kidnapped. Together with an amnesiac blue tang fish, Dory, the father (Merlin) sets out to find Nemo at all costs.
- In the sequel, from 2016, Dory wants to look for her parents, whom she only has vague memories of. Together with Nemo and Merlin, they set out on another adventure.
Shark Tale (DreamWorks)
The son of a shark mob boss is found dead, together with a young fish, Oscar, claiming he killed him. Oscar teams up with the mobster’s younger son, Lenny, to keep up the facade. However, it doesn’t work out for long.
Animes (Asian movies/tv)
Bermuda Triangle
The daily life of young mermaid idols.
Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch
Comedy, romance and music. Magical girls plot but instead of fighting, they sing.
Precure (franchise)
A magical girls franchise with many, many tv shows. Most of them play on land, but there are 3 underwater or with mermaids as well:
- Tropical Rouge! Pretty cure
- Star Twinkle
- Precure 5 Go! Go!
Ningyohime
Anime (Japanese) version of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid.
This boy caught a merman (OVA)
A fiery-hair merman and a human fall in love.
Big Fish & Begonia (Da Yu Hai Tang)
In a mythical world, the residents undergo a rite of passage to the human world when they come of age, in the form of red dolphins. Chun, the protagonist, gets caught in a net the day it’s time to head back home, and almost doesn’t make it, but a human boy saves her. However, he dies. As soon as Chun is back in her world, she uses magic to bring him back to life – only to learn that this power comes at a serious price.
Very beautiful and emotional film! Love the animation and the mythological lore!
Lu over the wall
A friendship between a young mermaid and a human boy, as they connect through music and learn about each other’s world.
Puka Puka Juju
A short film about a young girl and her fantastical underwater dreams.
Little Mermaid: Attack of the pirates (Mei ren yu zhi hai dao lai xi)
Chinese take on The Little Mermaid, but with a different storyline. A mermaid saves the captain’s young daughter.
Frog Kingdom 1 & 2
- 1 (青蛙王国):
A frog princess participates undercover in the Froglympics. - 2: On Frozen Pond (Qing Wa Wang Guo Zhi Bing Dong Da Mao Xian):
Frog warriors try to stop the sneaky One-Eye from plunging the kingdom into a new ice age.
Other animated movies/shows
The new adventures of Ocean Girl
Oceans is a planet mostly covered in water, due to a crystal stolen 2000 years ago. Most creatures have adapted to live underwater. (Based on a live action series.)
Sea Princesses
Even though looking like humans and only having “accessories” from the sea animals they represent, they live and do everything underwater.
Bubble Guppies
Preschoolers of the merfolk attend school and learn about various things.
Mermaid High (Webseries)
Four mermaids want to attend the high-school on land, but they didn’t think avoiding water was that difficult.
(Available to watch for free on YouTube.)
Sirenetta & the second star (Webseries)
Sirenetta has been living on land for a while, but when mermaids come to ask for help, she must return to the sea.
Fish hooks
Set inside a giant fish tank in a pet shop. High-school life of fishes.
The little mermaid
1992 adaptation by Golden Films.
The sea beast (2022)
Terrifying creatures roam the seas; the monster hunters are the heroes. Or are they?
Snorks
Playful creatures who love to dart about and make music.
Dive, Olly, Dive!
Two talking submarine-fishes are submarines in-training. Together with their other underwater and human friends alike, they have lots of adventures and learn many things for their future job.
Le phare
A french short film from 2017, about a mermaid guarding a lighthouse, and sailors, who are lured by her.
Mermaze Mermaidz
Five mermaid friends have to save their underwater city.
No fantasy creatures:
Octonauts
A band of explorers roam the oceans in search of adventures and fun.
Help! I’m a fish
Three children accidentally get turned into fish, after drinking a potion.
Fish police
A fish detective navigates an underwater metropolis, solving often mafia-related crimes.
Rainbow Fish
Rainbow Fish and his friends learn valuable lessons throughout their daily lives. Also available as books.
Deep (2017)
In 2100, when humans have abandoned earth, a colony of creatures still roam the deepest abyss of the ocean.
Go Fish! (2019)
A mysterious black goop reaches an undersea town, so a brave fish and his friends need to cross the ocean and fix it, before it’s too late.
Sea Level: Seafood (2011)
Pup, a bamboo shark, discovers egg sacs while playing around the ocean with his friends. When he sees human poachers stealing the eggs from his reef, Pup makes it his mission to save his family.
Magic Arch 3D (2020)
A young dolphin with an active imagination saves Fish Town from evil Moray Eels, and reunites with his father after discovering a magic arch that makes wishes come true.
Sammy’s adventures 1 & 2
A sea turtle, hatched in 1959, spends 50 years traveling the world, while it changes from global warming.
Flipper & Lopaka
Lopaka, a young Polynesian boy living on an island, can communicate with sea creatures and hold his breath for long periods of time underwater. Together with his best friend, Flipper, a dolphin, and their other sea friends, they work together to thwart the nefarious plans of Dexter, an octopus.
Zoom the white dolphin
Two children live with their sailor uncle on an island and go on many adventures with Zoom, a white dolphin.
There’s an anime from 1971, and a CG reboot from 2013. I’ve only seen the reboot.
Seal Team (2021)
When Quinn’s friend gets killed in a shark attack, he assembles a team of seals to fight back. He seeks help from Claggart, a skillful combatant, to get his team in shape.
Live Action:
H2O Just Add Water
An Australian tv show with 3 seasons.
Three teenage girls – Cleo, Emma and Rikki (and Bella, in season 3) – accidentally strand on Mako Island and, while trying to get to higher ground to get a better phone connection, they land in a mysterious cave. As they go into the pool, which leads directly to the ocean and is the only way out, the full moon rises and something magical happens. Now, whenever they touch water, they grow fish tails and can control the water, each in their own ways.
Mako Mermaids
Three mermaids are on a mission to turn a half-merman back human. But first, they need to learn how to walk on land.
(A spin-off of the above, though the only aspect they share is Mako. Rikki makes an appearance in season 3.)
Avatar 2: The Way of Water
The sequel to Avatar, set 14 years after the first film. Sully and his family leave the forest and seek refugee in the Metkayina Clan. The so called “reef Na’vi” live on multiple islands and spend a lot of time underwater.
Story-wise, I prefer the first movie, but there are many aspects I’m in love with the sequel: Kiri (a character), the sign language they use to communicate underwater, the Tulkun (whale-like creatures, who can form a sibling-soulmate bond with the Na’vi), and the explorations of the ocean. (And the water animation!)
Siren
A young siren is looking for her sister, who has been captured by humans. (Horror genre.)
Aquaman (DC)
Arthur is the son of Queen Atlantis and a human. He can talk with sea creatures.
The Little Mermaid
Disney’s live action remake of their own The little Mermaid.
See you in Part 3, which will be uploaded on 5th May 2024!
~Arden Skye
One thought on “Merfolk & Water Creatures in Movies & TV”