Prosecutors argued that Gordon, having seen the trailer for Kung Fu Panda, had fabricated and backdated drawings of characters similar to those seen in the film.
However, after seeing the trailer he amended his drawings and renamed his story Kung Fu Panda Power.
A cartoonist who falsely claimed to be the creator of Kung Fu Panda has been sentenced to two years in prison for fraud and ordered to pay $3m (£2.3m) in damages.
Jayme Gordon, from Randolph, Massachusetts, filed a copyright lawsuit in 2011 alleging that DreamWorks Animation had stolen characters and story from him for the 2008 animated comedy.