Kidneys for Communities, a national nonprofit focused on kidney transplants, announced a partnership with National CineMedia (NASDAQ: NCMI) to expand living donor campaigns through cinema advertising. The collaboration follows a pilot program that generated 8,200 views over six weeks and resulted in 18 donor sign-ups, leading to one successful match.

The partnership places targeted advertisements featuring kidney patients before films at major theater chains including AMC, Cinemark, and Regal. The ads use QR codes to direct viewers to donor registration platforms. NCM is donating advertising inventory and production costs for the campaigns.

The initiative originated when NCM employee Ricky Hernandez, a kidney transplant recipient, used cinema advertising for his own donor campaign, which led to his successful transplant. Hernandez then brought the concept to Kidneys for Communities to expand its reach.

"This partnership represents a breakthrough in how we reach and engage potential living donors," said Atul Agnihotri, CEO of Kidneys for Communities. "By bringing these deeply personal stories into movie theaters—where audiences are already emotionally engaged—we are creating a powerful new pathway for connection, compassion, and ultimately, life-saving action."

NCM uses proprietary algorithms to place kidney donation messages alongside family-oriented films to reach target demographics. The company reports cinema ad recall rates of 74% compared to 28% for social media, citing the focused attention of theater audiences.

More than 100,000 people nationwide are waiting for kidney transplants. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identifies kidney disease as a leading cause of death in the U.S., affecting an estimated 35.5 million people, with approximately 90% unaware they have the condition.

The organizations plan to expand the partnership to potentially support dozens of patient campaigns annually and test different outreach strategies, including community-specific messaging.