When Mike Downie first heard the story of Chanie “Charlie” Wenjack — an Ojibway boy who died while running away from his residential school — it was like an arrow shot through his heart. He shared the story with his brother, Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie, and the two vowed to find a way to tell it to the world.

The result was their multi-media project Secret Path, consisting of a music album and, with Essex County-born artist Jeff Lemire, a graphic novel and film. Gord Downie died in October; his brother will pay him tribute in the free public presentation “Documenting the Secret Path,” on the UWindsor campus on Thursday, November 16.

A celebrated storyteller, Mike Downie is writer, director, and producer of numerous documentaries, as well as a founder of Edgarland Films. He won a Canadian Screen Award for best science documentary for his film Invasion of the Brain Snatchers.

His appearance in Windsor is sponsored by the Humanities Research Group as part of its distinguished speaker series and set for 4 p.m. in Vanier Hall’s Katzman Lounge.