From the UCLA news service:

UCLA mathematicians bring ocean to life for Disney’s ‘Moana’

From the second paragraph:

“In general, the animators and artists at the studios want as little to do with mathematics and physics as possible, but the demands for realism in animated movies are so high,” [UCLA mathematician Joseph] Teran said. “Things are going to look fake if you don’t at least start with the correct physics and mathematics for many materials, such as water and snow. If the physics and mathematics are not simulated accurately, it will be very glaring that something is wrong with the animation of the material.”

I recommend the whole article.