The Atlanta Film Festival has announced the films that will command the prestigious opening and closing slots of the 38th annual fest, March 28-April 6.

The opening night feature will be “Joe,” starring Nicolas Cage as a hard-living ex-con who meets a hard-luck 15-year-old boy and becomes an unlikely protector and role model. Based on the novel by the late Mississippi writer Larry Brown, the Texas-set drama is directed by David Gordon Green (HBO’s “Eastbound and Down,” “Pineapple Express”), who will appear at the screening.

The closing film is “The Double,” a black comedy starring Jesse Eisenberg (“The Social Network”) as timid, isolated Simon, whose life is turned upside down by the arrival of a co-worker, James (also played by Eisenberg), who shares his appearance but is his opposite in terms of confidence, charisma and ease with the opposite sex. Also featuring Mia Wasikowska, “The Double” is directed by Richard Ayoade (the British sitcom “The IT Crowd”). It will show April 5, with the fest’s final day reserved for encore showings.

Atlanta Film Festival screenings will be at the Plaza Theatre and 7 Stages. To see lists of 15 narrative features and 15 documentaries coming to the fest, go to http://blogs.ajc.com/arts-culture. More on the fest: www.atlantafilmfestival.com.