Well Jordon,
It seems that you are well on your way to building a great paludarium. I just wanted to offer some input since I have recently done this same thing for a RETF paludarium. I did this by using your first method. I used the light diffuser and built a 4" tall section along the back side and I had it angled at the front to create a ramp. I then wrapped it in weed blocker mesh. This should prevent the frogs from getting stuck behind or under it. You can even hide the a pump under the false bottom to circulate water to a water fall. The trick here is to have the water table about an inch below the false bottom so that the substrate does not get soaked.