Just for the record, if it is useful for anyone by this time:
I finally purchased an Anima All license due to the shortcoming of the deadline.
It was pretty useful for the project. Even though the UE integration could be tighter, the workflow went very smooth and the time saving was enourmous for populating near a hundred custom actors.
You have to come and go to their editor to fine tune the timings and paths if you want some more choreographic movements in combination with other simulated assets, but I would encourage to give it a try if you are short on time.
Best