IIRC, animations (as in, battle-exclusive animations) are played on the screen belonging to the battle window.
the status window is a different window altogether, IIRC, with it's own viewport and it's own geometry.
so, you might be indeed displaying the animation on the top Z of the battle window, but the status window will always be drawn on top of that, and it has it's own Z.
I *THINK* that's the case.
YEP might overwrite that, but I'm not sure.