Where I'm at thus far...
The fantasy film would look as though it was made in '88 (When A3 should have been produced.) Any CGI would look like a practical effect. Film grain and set design all from that era. It would have a "Third Act of the Trilogy" sort of structure. Twin themes of a hyper-aggressive alien nation on a blitzkrieg for lebensraum, and the total alienation of the characters from all humanity.
The Prologue includes Ripley bombing the derelect from space after some samples were somehow removed by the company and/or military. To cover their tracks, they blame Ripley and Hicks for sabotage of the reactor and loss of the squad. They have reports from Burke and data recorders that make it seem most incriminating. Newt is in danger because she is a witness and they are willing to kill to keep their operation secret. Ripley and Hicks are sentenced to death in absentia by the colonial and company and military authorities.
They live as fugitves aboard the Sulaco out on the fringe. Maybe the ship was carrying hard currency to support a large military and recovery operation. Maybe they pick up a few other ne'er-do-wells, runaways and rejects possibly including an android escaping slavery and interpreting it's basic imperatives in a very questionable way.
The political situation is that sectors of space are owned by nations and corporations. They exploit the resources and terreform worlds to colonize. The U.S. sectors are sold to corporations and are run out of the Department of the Exterior, Bureau of Colonial Affairs. The Bureau maintains a federal administration with a military (StarFleet and Colonial Marines) and there is a Colonial Congress to represent the common concerns of the settlers. The corporations have broad authority in their sectors. The United Nations maintains a United Worlds Organization to represent the common concerns of humanity in space.
After the elimination of the derelect, we could see a "false start." Ripley and Bishop could wake early to prepare the ship for docking. Ripley could hard wire Bishop into the ship and eat while getting ready. She checks the networks for news of the Sulaco and the world? She discovers they are betrayed and asks bishop about the funds on board.
After the prologue, we see the crew waking from stasis and going for the obligatory meal. Here we piece together the situation from bits and pieces of the conversations. The ship needs maintainance, some of the basic character traits and conflicts. Above all, they want to make things safe for Newt to go to University.
Newt is about 18. She has been kept in stasis about twice as long as the others who must maintain the ship and business. She is very attached to ship and crew. She has rejected the"regular" society that has rejected them. She's frustrated with being out of the loop. Ripley is an inverted Uncle Owen and Hicks is an uncertain Aunt Beru. They want her to go to school. They want her to denounce them now that she's old enough so that she will be safe. An argument (good-natured and dismissive by Newt, stern and insistent from Ripley.
We learn (possibly a separate address) they are running low of money. They can't keep on like this forever. We learn that the ship has been put on course to a company owned colony in the company sector. Ripley and Hicks heard there is proof that would exonerate them or at least take most of the heat off. After that, they want to go to High Singapore to purchase registration and licenses.
We learn from a ruffled looking Bishop that a distress call has gone out from the colony. Why isn't clear. They need every ship in range to come to orbit. Their plan is to evacuate children too young to fight along with their mothers. The Sulaco could sustain more than a thousand in orbit. Once it takes refugees, the ship is effectively trapped in orbit. They can be arrested and put to death. Newt argues that it must be a trick and they'd never tolerate terrible criminals to run the ship with their children aboard. Ripley and Hicks decide to cut a deal and go.