Ponyo (2008) - Synopsis

The plot is centered on a fish girl, or mermaid, who runs away from her home in the sea. She ends up stranded on the shore and is rescued by Ssuke, a five year old boy who lives on a cliff. After taking a great liking to her, Ssuke names her Ponyo and vows to protect her forever. Meanwhile, her father, Fujimoto, is looking for his daughter, upset that she ran away. He calls his wave spirits to return Ponyo to him. Ssuke is heartbroken by this, and goes home with his mother, Lisa (or "Risa" in some translations), who tries to cheer him up, but to no avail.

Ponyo and her father have a confrontation, where Ponyo refuses to let her father call her "Brünnhilde". She declares her name to be Ponyo, and voices her desire to become human because she has started to fall in love with Ssuke. Her father silences her with difficulty and goes to summon Ponyo's mother. Meanwhile, Ponyo, with the help of her sisters, breaks away from her father, and uses his magic to make herself human. This causes an imbalance in the world, which in turn results in a huge storm. Riding on the waves of the storm, Ponyo goes back to visit Ssuke. Lisa, Ssuke, and Ponyo stay the night at Ssuke's house, hoping the storm will be over, whereupon Lisa leaves the house to check up on the residents of the nursing home she works at.