A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a 1945 American film that marked the directorial debut of Elia Kazan. Adapted by Tess Slesinger and Frank Davis from the 1943 novel by Betty Smith, the period drama focuses on an impoverished but aspirational second-generation Irish-American family living in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, in the early 20th century. Peggy Ann Garner received the Academy Juvenile Award for her performance as Francie Nolan, the adolescent girl at the center of the coming-of-age story. Other stars are Dorothy McGuire, Joan Blondell, Lloyd Nolan, Ted Donaldson and James Dunn, who received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Francie's father.