To see your awards entries by category in Dapple, ask applicants to choose their category on the submission form, then filter the Submissions list by that question. Select the project, open Filters → Form Fields, choose your category field and pick a value — e.g. Genre → Drama. For a list your whole team can see, bulk-tag the results with a matching Submission Tag. For one-click access, save the filter as a View.
How should I set up the category question on my form?
Make the category the first thing applicants answer, and make it a choice field so every answer matches one of your categories exactly.
Put it first. Applicants choose their category before anything else, so the rest of the form can adapt to it.
Use a choice field. A Dropdown or Single field gives you a fixed list of values to filter by. Free-text answers ("drama", "Drama film") won't group cleanly.
Make it required. An entry with no category won't appear in any category filter.
Use conditional logic for category-specific questions. Show the questions relevant to each category only to applicants who chose it.
Field type | Best for |
Dropdown | Four or more categories |
Single | Two or three categories, shown as radio buttons |
To show a question only for one category, open the question in Form Builder, go to the Conditions tab, choose Hide by Default, then Add Rule → Show When your category field equals that category. Full guide: How to Set Up Conditional Logic in Dapple Forms. Field types are listed in the Form Field Reference.
How do I see every entry in one awards category?
Filter the Submissions list by your category question.
Open Submissions.
Click Project and select your awards project.
Click Filters, then choose Form Fields next to Filter by.
Choose your category field — e.g. Genre.
Click Select value… and choose the category — e.g. Drama.
The list shows only entries in that category, and the count above the list (e.g. "Showing3 of 3 submissions") tells you how many there are. Change the value to switch categories.
How do I tag and save each category for quick access?
Tag each category's entries so your team can see them at a glance, then save a View so you can return to the list in one click.
Before you start
Create a Submission Tag for each category under Settings → Organisation Settings → Tags — e.g. Drama, Comedy, Horror, Action. See How to Create Tags in Dapple.
For each category
Filter by the category, as above — e.g. Genre → Drama.
Click Select All, then With Selected → Add Tag and choose Drama.
Full steps for tagging: How to Bulk-Tag Submissions in Dapple.
Next, click the star icon in the top-right, choose Save current view and name it — e.g. "Drama entries".
Change the value to the next category and repeat.
When you're finished, clear the form field filter with the × next to the value. See the next section for why.
This will give you a way to quickly see or filter by category.
Why does my Submissions list show 0 results?
A form field filter stays applied until you clear it. If you move on — to another project, or to a different filter — the list still only shows entries matching that answer, and often shows nothing at all.
Click Filters.
Click the × next to the form field value to remove it.
The full list returns. To clear every filter at once, use More in the top-right.
Which option should I use: filter, tag or saved View?
Use all three together. Each does a different job.
Option | What it gives you | Includes new entries? |
Form field filter | A live list of one category in one project | Yes |
Submission Tag | A coloured label on each entry, visible to your whole team and filterable across projects | No — tag new entries as they arrive |
Saved View | One-click return to a filter, for you only | Yes — the filter re-runs each time |
Best practice
Tag categories once entries close, so every entry is included. If you tag earlier, re-run the filter and tag again before judging starts.
Use the same category names for your form options and your tags, so filters and tags line up.
Add the year to tags for recurring awards — e.g. "Drama 2026" — so past cycles don't mix with the current one.
Combine a category filter with a Stage filter to build each category's shortlist.
Use category tags to split judging: filter by tag, then bulk-assign each category to its judges.