[ThetaDot]

The point of student judging is to bring us into to fore a bit more. I have confidence in the kids that did the animations to be able to judge decently enough.
I had no problem with the organisation of the judging; it went pretty smooth - at least at GLR.

Also I think part of the ambiguity in what the judges want has a purpose. We are free to do what we want and to show it how we want to. If a finely detailed rubric gets distributed to us, we are going to end up seeing the same animation over and over. Personally, I made what I wanted, without regard for what would get me a win.
I agree with what Collin234 said. To do some of the things you suggest means making it less of a challenge in my mind.

Also, I do not agree with separating the animation work time from the robot build time. The visualization is an optional component and so anybody pulled between the two should obviously drop the animation and go for the robot.

This is the first year our school had done FIRST, and I don't think anybody on our team has had any complaints. I know the animation competition isn't perfect, but I am not going to ask for perfection. I am content with how it exists today.