For the trail I think we did something similar and the guys used maya paintFX. you can draw the curves and animate them.
or you can try particles with a hard motion that stop quickly.
but it is a matter a few diffrent take that you heavely mix and tweek in comp more than a full 3D final effect
if you are talking about the water border of the pict, shooting real splashes to add or warp the edges would do the trick
once again heavy comping.
or you can try realflow
